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OPE! 



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LI Z 



LIBRARY OF CONGRESS. 



Chai).S.\/. Copyright N^.12,_t^^ 



UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, 



WHIST OPENINGS 



A Systematic Treatment of the 
Short-Suit Game 



BY 

EDWIN C. HOWELL 






BOSTON, 1806 



Qv 



Copyright, 1896, by Edwin C. Howell. 



^inli^am Press, §anian. 



This volume is gratefully dedicated to 
Charton L, Becker^ 
Charles M. Clay, 

AND 

Charles S. Knowles, 

Who have contributed valuable suggestions to the 

theory of the new whist, and have heartily 

cooperated with the author in its study and 

trial. Without their assistance the 

short-suit system of play could 

never have been developed 

and given to the whist 

world in its present 

form. 



CONTENTS. 







PAGE. 


Author's Apology 


vii 


Search for New System . 




4 


Ear-Marks of Short-Suit Game 




8 


The Fundamental Principle 




8 


Example of Play 




10 


"The Brute Game" . • . 




13 


Five Ways of Winning Tricks 




15 


Example of Play 




18 


Five Classes of Original Leads 




21 


Long-Suit Game in Detail 




24 


Lead of 2, 3, 4 and 5 




24 


Maxim 






28 


Necessary Strength . 






28 


Tenaces 






29 


Call for Trumps in Lead 






2>^ 


Examples of Play 


26, 32, 34 


,38, 


40,42 


Supporting-Card Game 






43 


Lead of Q, J, 10 and 9 






44 


Interior Leads . 






46 


Second Hand . 






56 


Third Hand . 






58 


Fourth Hand . 






58 


Examples of Play 


43,51.52 


^53, 


54,55 



vi CONTENTS. 






PAGE. 


Ruffing Game . . . 


. 62 


Lead of 8, 7 and 6 . 


. 62 


Lead of Singleton .... 


. 70 


Lead of Ace and One Small 


. 7?> 


Examples of Play . . 63, 67, 


68, 71, 72 


High-Card Game . . . . 


• 75 


Trump Attack 


. 76 


Secondary Leads .... 


• 79 


Advice to Short-Suiter 


. 80 


Signals and Discards 


. 81 


Law of Whist Strategy . 


• 83 


Meanings of New Leads . 


. 84 


Examples of "the Card to Lead" 


. 86 


Variations 


• 95 



.-^■^^^^^2-. 



APOLOGETIC. 

For his frequent use of the first personal 
pronoun in these pages the author craves 
the indulgence of his readers. Although he 
believes the sort of whist-play here advo- 
cated to be of a thoroughly scientific char- 
acter, he has not ventured to assume that it 
rests upon an established scientific basis, be- 
cause it is too new for that. Hence he could 
not bring himself to write about it in an un- 
compromising', taken-for-granted manner, 
in the style of books on arithmetic. He 
feels that he is addressing an audience upon 
a novel topic, or at least an entirely novel 
treatment of an old topic. Some of his 
auditors will at the outset surely listen with 
distrust. The author's desire, therefore, is 
to suggest and persuade,, rather than to lay 
down the law in a dogmatic way. 

Will the reader, then, forgive this per- 
fectly transparent attempt to take him into 
the author's confidence? 

EDWIN C. HOWELL. 

American Whist Club, 

Boston, Mass., June i, 1896. 
vii 



INTRODUCTORY. 

To those sensitive Tristians who look 
upon the fourth-best and American leads as 
both the means and the end of existence, 
the short-suit game of whist appears to be 
somewhat painful. Why, it is hard to tell, 
but it is so. One of my long-suit friends, 
for instance, calls it ''cut-throat" whist, 
thereby expressing the acute effect that its 
practice exerts upon his delicate organism. 
His sincerity I question. There are other 
players who rank Cavendish a peg below 
the Mahatmas, and believe that out of 
Foster, the eccentric and maligned, some 
good may yet arise. To all such unpreju- 
diced and charitably inclined individuals I 
recommend this outline of a short-suit sys- 
tem as a novelty worthy at least of investiga- 
tion and trial. For my own part, I am con- 
vinced that with equally skilful handling it 
will beat the ordinary long-suit game all the 
time. The fallacies of the long-suit game, 
absurdly shallow when you see through 
them, Foster has exposed in his books and 
1 



2 EOWELU^ 

in the New York Sun; and the practical 
superiority of the short-suit game its ablest 
exponents have time and again been ready 
to demonstrate in actual play. Neverthe- 
less, short-suiters of the first force have at 
no time been numerous, because this style of 
play was the outward manifestation of 
genius, and could not be (or was not) 
taught by any text-book. In a word, the 
short-suit game was never systematized. 

A few years ago, discussing with Foster 
the short-suit ideas promulgated in his 
"Whist Strategy," I asked him if he thought 
they could be reduced to a system, as me- 
thodical, perhaps, as long-suit whist, or the 
so-called "modern scientific" game. He did 
not see how. In fact, he could not lay down 
any hard-and-fast rules for the different 
sorts of leads — could not erect guide posts, 
to tell the wayfarer when to follow the long- 
suit highroad, and when to turn down a 
short-suit lane; and, what is more, he did 
not Avant to. He would have every good 
player open his hand as he saw fit. What 
he wished beyond all to avoid was a cut-and- 
dried, wooden, or "parrotic" style of play. 



WHIST OPENINGS. 3 

This notion was very charming and ingen- 
ious, but I held then, have always main- 
tained, and believe now more firmly than 
ever, that a definite system of play, founded 
in principle and developed by information- 
giving conventions, is essential to the prac- 
tice of whist, however pleasing the go-as- 
you-please tactics may be in theory. This 
conclusion I reached through bitter expe- 
rience. There may be mind-reading souls 
who can comprehend unmeaning leads, size 
up situations in the dark, and grasp unfore- 
seen opportunities, but I have looked for 
them long and earnestly, and they have not 
yet appeared. Many is the time and oft, in 
experimenting with the style of game that is 
not cut-and-dried, wooden, or ''parrotic," 
that my partner and I have gone creeping, 
groping, floundering around, searching for a 
will-o'-the-wisp from the alpha to the omega 
of a hand, while our adversaries, standing 
on an imperfect but simple long-suit plat- 
form, have viewed our paroxysms with un- 
concern, and with a blind and unreasoning 
faith have captured all the tricks that be- 
longed to them, and a few that ought to 



4 HOWELUS 

have come to us. And then the post- 
mortems, the might-have-beens, the "why 
didn't you do this, partner?" and the "why 
did you do that?" — which enhvened those 
solemn sessions! They were agonizing, 
but they taught me this valuable lesson — 
that any system whatever, good, bad, or in- 
different, is better than no system at all. 
Therefore have I patiently pursued my in- 
vestigations, with the one aim of discover- 
ing or inventing a new S3^stem of play, 
definite and logical and practicable. It is 
for whist-players to say whether or not I 
have succeeded. 

"But why," asks the devoted long-suiter, 
"why seek a new system? Is not the 
modern scientific, American game the acme 
and apotheosis of all that is great aid en- 
nobling in whist? Are you too dull to see 
that Cavendish is the supreme master, and 
that his dicta are inexorable and his maxims 
inspired?" 

To which I reply that I am a man of little 
faith, not a hero-worshipper, and perhaps an 
iconoclast. It is never too late to mend. I 
have always felt that there might be some- 



WHIST OPENINGS. 5 

thing better than Cavendish, and that there 
probably was. 

Such is my excuse. 

And now that I have apparently found 
the thing that I have been looking for, I am 
willing to let it go forth as its own vindica- 
tion; for — presumptuous though the state- 
ment may seem — I am entirely confident, 
after much examination and analysis of re- 
corded play and testing of the system in play 
at the table, that this outline of the short-suit 
game, here presented, contains the root and 
a good deal of the branch of a theory and 
practice of whist, which for trick-taking pur- 
poses is away ahead of anything ever 
dreamed of by Cavendish and his imitators 
and parasites. This vindication of the new 
whist openings h sufficient, so far, only to 
myself and a few friends and colaborers in 
the short-suit field ; but if it shall not prove 
satisfactory to others, it will be either be- 
cause they do not give the system a fair trial, 
looking into it independently of my say-so, 
or else because I am utterly mistaken. The 
latter contingency I of course consider im- 
possible. 'Twould not be good whist to 



6 HOWELUS WHIST OPENINGS. 

think otherwise. All I ask is a careful 
perusal of these pages, a conscientious ex- 
amination of the hands to which I refer, and 
then a fair trial, at duplicate whist, of the 
system proposed. If, in any person's expe- 
rience, it beats the long-suit game in a series 
of encounters on even terms, that person 
will be inclined to keep at it; and he will be 
quite sure to keep at it if he finds the game 
agreeable to his temperament and nerves. 
In the case of genuine whist-players I have 
no fear of the result, and there is some hope 
that even the long-suit invalid (who, in his 
afifliction, has the short-suiter's heartfelt 
sympathy) may, with courage and deter- 
mination, be able to assimilate the dose of 
medicine here offered to him, and recover 
his health. 



EXPLANATORY. 

The raison d'etre of the short-suit game, 
by which we mean the reason that has in- 
duced players, past and present, to dally 
with it, is in a sense negative. To many 
minds it has seemed better than the long- 
suit game because the long-suit game ap- 
peared not good at all for its ostensible pur- 
pose — that of taking tricks by means of the 
establishment of suits. The long suit's pre- 
tensions in that direction were finally ex- 
ploded in a series of articles in the New 
York Sunday Sun, beginning February 23, 
1896. I won't go into details. The gist of 
the expose was that the long suit does not 
accomplish what is claimed for it. Every 
player knows that when, from a generally 
weak hand, he lays on the table the fourth- 
best card of a long suit, he stands only a 
small chance of winning a trick with the 
first-best. Is there any way of improving 
that chance? Is there any way of relieving 
partner from the necessity of backing you in 
a clearly unprofitable venture? The short- 
7 



8 HOWELL'S 

suiter says there is. It is simple enough — 
don't touch the long suit at all, but open a 
short one and wait. Here is the principle — 
the epitaph of the long-suit game and the 
short-suiter's epiphany hymn: 

Given a long suit not headed by a sequence of 
two or more high cards, and not accompanied by 
such strength in trumps and the other plain suits 
that, with reasonable assistance from partner, you 
can establish and bring it in, you will be more like- 
ly to win tricks in the suit if somebody else opens 
it than if you open it yourself. 

Ergo, with such a hand let the long suit 
alone. Lead a suit in which you don't ex- 
pect to take a trick, and then you will not be 
disappointed. Nor will you compromise 
partner's hand by forcing him to make a 
probable sacrifice that can do neither of 
you any good. If you lead a fairly high 
card you will probably strengthen partner's 
hand more or less, and if you lead a very 
short suit you will not improbably win a 
trick or two in trumps just when you need 
them. Such are the distinct ear-marks of 
the short-suit game — tender nursing of 
strength that cannot take care of itself, sup- 



WHIST OPENINGS. 9 

port of partner without self-sacrifice, and 
cheerful consent to a "force" with weak 
trumps or strong if you see nothing better. 
Suppose, for example, that you have the 
hand Hearts, K 9 8 5; Clubs, K J 9 6 3; 
Diamonds, 10 4; Spades, 9 6. Hearts are 
trumps. Queen of Hearts being turned. 
(In all the illustrative hands and play in this 
book Hearts are trumps. Clubs the best 
plain suit. Diamonds the next best, and 
Spades the weakest suit.) This is the open- 
ing hand (the suits being transposed) of deal 
No. 22, A. W. L. Trophy finals, 1894. 
What should you lead from the hand? As 
actually played, of course, by the Minne- 
apolis and Chicago long-suiters at Philadel- 
phia, the fourth-best of the long suit — 6 of 
Clubs — was led at both tables. The short- 
suiter considers this a quite unreasonable 
play. Without a single card of reentry in 
Diamonds or Spades, and with only moder- 
ate trump strength, he knows that the prob- 
ability of bringing in the Clubs is too faint 
to waste a thought upon. His best chance/ 
for making Club tricks is to lie low in that'^ 
suit. He therefore resorts to a short suit, 



10 



HOWELL'S 



naturally choosing that which contains the 
better supporting card. The lead from the 
hand, then, is lo of Diamonds. I gave 
this deal to four strong players, the original 
leader and his partner being practitioners of 
the system advocated in this book, and their 
adversaries being shrewd players of the 
long-suit school, and this is the way they 
did it: 





North. 


East. 


South. 


West. 


1 


^ 5 
4 K 


J 
^ J 
* 7 

2 
^ 2 


Z> A 


A <f> 


2 


Z> 3 


3 


*io 

* 2 
4k 4- 

3 4» 
^ 4 

A 4k 


A Q 


4 


« J 

* 3 
6 « 

^ 8 

9 ♦ 
^ 9 


*A 

4k 5 


5 


Q 


5 4|k 
3 
J ♦ 
5 
8 
2 4|k 
8 4k 


09 O 


7 


8 


7 4k 


9 


C^ 6 
♦ 8 

6 
9 


^ 7 


10 


C? K 


^\o 


11 


A 9 


7 


12 


A 6 


4 4k 


13 


4 


Q 







WHIST OPENINGS. 11 

NOTES. 

Trick I — East plays properly in covering 
the lo led. As a general rule second hand 
should cover a short-suit, supporting card 
led, if he can do so without risking the loss 
of a valuable card, and sometimes even 
then. 

Trick 2 — West's trump lead is perfectly 
justifiable; almost any player would con- 
sider it the best lead from the hand. 

Trick 3 — South, having the second-best 
Diamond guarded, carefully avoids that 
suit, and returns to partner a supporting 
card in another suit. The Clubs being 
worthless except as a possible help to part- 
ner, he opens them from the top. West, at 
second hand, follows the usual practice of 
just covering, so as to prevent third hand 
from finessing too deeply; some players, 
however, in West's position, would play 
low, and still others would go in with the 
Ace. 

Trick 4 — North now clears his long suit, 
having a much more favorable opportunity 
than he would have had if he had originally 
opened it. 



12 HOWELL'S 

Trick 7 — Again West's trump lead is cor- 
rect enough, but North's pretty underplay 
balks his adversary's intention. 

Trick 9 — South can now place the trumps 
exactly, and does not fail to do his duty at 
the critical point of a beautifully played 
hand. 

North makes good three of his five 
Clubs. In the A. W. L. Congress play one 
North player did not win a trick in that suit, 
and the other succeeded in scoring with his 
Jack. At each table five tricks were taken 
North and South by long-suit play; by the 
short-suit play North and South won seven 
tricks. The moral is obvious. There is 
nothing pecuHar or exceptional about the 
deal; it is like myriads of others that a whist- 
player meets, in which the original leader 
would fare much better with his long suit 
if he would only let it alone imtil he has an 
opportunity to do something with it. 

What I have said about the original open- 
ing of a suit not headed by a sequence does 
not apply, of course, to a very strong suit, 
either virtually established (like A K Q and 



WHI^T OPENINGS. 13 

Others) or in such a condition that it can be 
speedily cleared without assistance from 
partner (like K Q J and others). With such^ 
a suit your reason for opening "short" is / 
gone. If it is backed by sufficient trump 
strength and courage, lead trumps; if not, 
make what you can out of it while you have 
the opportunity. The latter method is what 
one of my short-suit friends calls the brute 
game. It is a mean kind of strategy, like 
hitting a man with a club, and, I am glad to 
say, it is not often necessary; but it demands 
respectful consideration. If, with the 
simon-pure long-suiters, I could conscien- 
tiously acknowledge that every long suit, 
whether indifferently strong or utterly weak, 
is an efficient weapon, I might believe in its 
use in season and out of season; but I can- 
not make that acknowledgment. On the 
contrary, I regard the ordinary long suit, 
compared with the short, as a single-stick to 
a rapier. I prefer the rapier. 

But if you hav^ a really good plain suit . 
(K lo and three or more small, for instance), 
with trump strength behind it, and with 
mean>^f protection and reentry in the other . 
suits, I am not so incredulous as to scout 



14 HOWELUS WHIHT OPEXING^. 

the idea of establishing and bringing in that 
good plain suit; and, being able to count, I 
can see that such a result is all I have a right 
to expect from the hand under any system. 
Hence I believe in the long-suit game when 
(and only when) it will probably, or with a 
reasonable degree of probability, do what it 
is intended to do — namely, establish and 
bring in the long suit. Establish and bring 
in, mind you. We short-suiters don't care 
a fig about merely clearing a suit; we must 
also do some business with it afterward in 
order to gratify our covetous inclinations. 
We would rather take tricks in a suit with- 
out establishing it, than establish it without 
taking tricks. 

Have I so far made my meaning suffi- 
ciently clear? If I have — if the reader feels 
that the short-suit idea is not a mere whim 
and symptom of contrariness (which some 
people seem to consider it), but has a foun- 
dation in common sense and logic (as we 
short-suiters understand those faculties) — 
then we are prepared to go on and see 
whither this alleged system will carry us. 



FORMS OF STRATEGY. 

There are five ways in which you may win 
tricks at whist. 

In the first place, you may establish a long 
plain suit, exhaust the adversaries' trumps, 
and make the small cards of the established 
suit. That is the long-suit game in all its 
integrity and pristine vigor. 

Or, with or without the establishment of a 
suit, you may pick up tricks here and there 
with high cards, and if you make all the 
high cards you have, never fretting about 
the small ones, you may consider yourself 
lucky. If you play with this end definitely 
in view, preserving your high cards and 
tenace strength, and leading cards worth- 
less in your own hand, but of such a size that 
they may help partner, then your method is 
what we generally call the supporting-card 
game. Foster uses the expression "tenace" 
game, but I prefer to retain the usual, re- 
stricted meaning of the word ''tenace," as 
applied to the best and third-best of a suit 

15 



16 HOWELL'S 

and a couple of similar combinations that I 
will speak about later. 

Or, having several high cards in sequence 
in a plain suit, you may endeavor to win 
tricks with them, as early as possible, with- 
out regard for the rest of the hand. That is 
the high-card game. 

Or, you may make small trumps by rufif- 
ing a suit in which you were short origi- 
nally. If you start in with the lead of a very 
short suit (whose nature partner will recog- 
nize by the card led, as I will afterward ex- 
plain), and aim to win tricks by rufhng that 
suit, your method is the ruMng game, pure 
and simple. 

Finally, having length and strength in 
trumps, and at least one good plain suit or 
winning cards scattered among the three 
plain suits, you may lead trumps originally, 
with the object of exhausting the adver- 
saries' trumps and protecting whatever 
plain-suit strength you and your partner 
may have. I shall call this the trump 
attack. 

Each one of these five methods of winning 
tricks has the character of a distinct plan, or 



WHI8T OPENINGS. 17 

form of strategy, if it is definitely adopted 
and indicated to partner either at the begin- 
ning or later during the play of a hand. 
You may, to be sure, start out with one end 
in view — that is, with one plan — and, some- 
thing better showing itself, may promptly 
switch to a quite different line of play. 
Such a proceeding does not destroy the sys- 
tematic character of the game. It changes 
the form of strategy, but is in itself pre- 
eminently strategic. He is the best strat- 
egist, indeed, who, knowing how to use his 
resources in the most effective manner, is 
always ready to adapt himself to circum- 
stances. I cannot teach the art of doing 
this. What I can do is to point out how, 
according to the short-suit theory, a hand 
should be opened, and how, in a general 
manner, the play may be developed, accord- 
ing to one plan or a combination of several 
plans; but at just what point in the progress 
of a certain game the player should change 
his tactics, he will always have to determine 
for himself. As an illustration of the 
seizure of opportunities resulting in the suc- 
cessive adoption of all five different forms of 



18 



HOWELL\S 



Strategy in one deal, I present the following: 
(Deal No. i8, Hamilton Trophy finals, 
1895; 8 of Hearts turned. North leads 
from the hand Hearts, A 10 9; Clubs, K 
10 9 6 2; Diamonds, 975; Spades, 8 5.) 





North. 


East. 


South. 


West. 


1 


8 « 
5 
7 

9 
5 # 

^ A 


J ♦ 

3 
6 

KO 


4 
8 
^ 4 


A* 

QO 

J 


2 


3 


4 


2 


5 


10 ♦ 

^ Q 
^ 5 
^ K 


4 4» 


6 


^ J 
^ 2 
^ 3 

2 « 
* 7 
*Q 
Jk A 


^ 6 


7 


^ 10 


^ 7 


8 


^ 9 
X 2 
X 6 
« 9 
X K 

*io 


^ 8 


9 


9 4|k 


6 4k 


10 


7 Hb 


100 


11 


3 # 


* 3 


13 


X 8 
« 5 


A J 


13 


A 


X 4 









NOTES. 

Trick I — North, having the choice of two 
short suits, neither of which contains a proba- 
bly good supporting card, selects the shorter 
suit. The 8-spot led, as we shall see later, 



WHIST OPENINGS. 19 

by this system indicates to partner a desire 
to play the ruffing game, with not more 
than two cards in the suit led. Contrary to 
expectation the 8 of Spades turns out in 
fact to be an excellent "strengthener" for 
partner's hand, and the lead therefore act- 
ually initiates the supporting-card game. 

Trick 2 — West plays the high-card game. 

Trick 4 — West's persistence in the Dia- 
mond suit, in spite of the certainty that the 
third round will be ruffed by one of the ad- 
versaries, is an indication, to everybody else 
at the table, of weakness in trumps. 

Trick 5 — South proceeds to clear his 
Spade suit, playing now the long-suit 
game, and at the same time giving partner 
his desired opportunity to ruff if he has no 
more Spades. 

Trick 6 — If East leads the Diamond, one 
adversary will discard and the other ruff. 
If he leads the Spade, South will win and 
North will get a discard, or else, if West can 
ruff, North will ruff over him. He cannot 
open his tenace in Clubs right up to North, 
who has strength in that suit if he has in 
anything. East is therefore almost forced 
to lead the trump as a defensive measure. 



20 HOWELUS WHIST OPENINGS. 

It is not his fault that the trump lead gives 
the adversary a chance for a coup. That is 
a peculiarity of the short-suit game ; the ad- 
versary of the short-suit leader is much more 
frequently driven to the wall and compelled 
to adopt desperate measures than the ad- 
versary of the long-suiter is. The game is 
now over. North knows that neither ad- 
versary has more than three trumps, and 
partner has at least three left, including the 
King; he therefore wins his partner's trick 
and goes back with the trump, that partner 
may win the third round and make his 
spades. This is the trump attack late in 
hand, just when it is most effective. 

By no other method than the short-suit 
opening can either North or South make 
anything of his long suit, if the adversaries 
play good whist. After the long-suit open- 
ing from the Clubs, the North and South 
hands are worth only four tricks, as com- 
pared with seven, the result obtained above 
by short-suit play. As played at the Min- 
neapolis Congress, one North and South 
pair made four tricks, and the other, by 
frightfully bad play on the part of East, got 
in six. 



THE NEW OPENINGS. 

Every hand should be opened with one of 
the foregoing forms of strategy in view. 
Our theory is, in a word, that the original 
leader should consider only the possibilities 
of his own hand. Beyond that he knows 
nothing about the situation, and if he plays 
in such a way as most probably to do him- 
self good, and receives intelligent support 
from partner, he should in the long run 
achieve the greatest possible degree of suc- 
cess with his cards. But, in order to re- 
ceive intelligent support from partner, hei 
must give definite information by his orig-/ 
inal lead, and how he may do this I now/ 
propose to show. 

We have a system of original leads, 
evolved from long experience and a careful 
study of many hands, in which every one of 
the thirteen cards of a suit, originally led, 
has a certain particular meaning. With this 
system the player can inevitably declare, by 
the very first card that he lays on the table, 
which of the five forms of strategy he desires 

21 



22 HOWELUS 

to practise during that hand ; in other words, 
he tells the general character of his hand by 
the original lead. I am not an enemy of the 
information-giving game. It is not on ac- 
count of its informatory character that I 
object to the long-suit game. The player 
must give information, or a partnership 
game is out of the question. The only mat- 
ter of choice is, what sort of information is 
the most advantageous. I have always 
favored general information. Under the 
long-suit system, if you open the hand with 
a small lay card, you say: "Partner, this is 
the fourth-best of my longest suit. It may 
not be the best thing to play for, but here it 
is, and we can determine later whether or 
not we should stick to it" Now, I don't 
like that so much as what I can say if we 
play any one of the forms of strategy of the 
present short-suit system, as: for the long- 
suit game, "Partner, here is my best suit. It 
is fairly strong, and I have, besides, so much 
trump and reentry support, that if you can 
back me up just a little bit, we shall bring it 
in;" or, for the supporting-card game, "Part- 
ner, I haven't a long suit worth fighting for. 



WHIST OPENINGS. 23 

Don't expect a trick from me in this suit, 
but help me make my high cards in other 
suits, and use rny trumps as_you see fit;" or, 
for the high-card game, 'Tartner, here's a 
very strong suit, the only thing in my hand 
worth considering. Let me get what I can 
out of it, and then look out for yourself;" or, 
for the ruffing game, "Partner, this suit is 
very short. I can certainly rufif it on the 
third round, and don't see anything better to 
do." 

When, after much figuring and experi- 
menting, I hit upon the means of giving all 
this information by the original lead, I felt 
that it was a revelation. However, whether 
it was a revelation or an illusion, I ask no- 
body to accept this system of leads on faith, 
but hope that all my readers may investigate 
their value in as careful and unbiased a man- 
ner as I have done. 



THE LONGSUIT QAflE. 

The elimination of the fourth-best, as an 
original lead from plain suits, is the first 
natural sequel of our theory of long-suit 
strategy. The fourth-best is quite unneces- 
sary now, because, when you open a long 
suit, you command partner to help you 
bring it in, regardless of all other considera- 
tions. The length or strength of your suit 
is none of his business; you will take care of 
that. Moreover, some of those cards which 
are now led as fourth-bests are needed for a 
special purpose in our system. A thorough 
investigation convinces me that the only 
cards required as low leads from long suits 
are the four smallest — 2, 3, 4 and 5. I can- 
not say that even these are absolutely neces- 
sary ; for, according to our ideas of the long- 
suit game, a player is very seldom justified 
in adopting that form of strategy unless he 
is strong enough in trumps to lead them be- 
fore starting his suit. My own inclinations 
in this regard are radical. By reserving the 
2, 3, 4 and 5 for long-suit leads I give plenty 



WHIST OPENINGS. 25 

of latitude to any short-suit player who may 
not be quite satisfied to restrict himself with- 
in the limits advised in this book; but, for 
myself, I am nearly ready to throw over- 
board altogether the low-card lead from 
long- suits, except as a purely conventional 
indication of trump strength, or as a 
bold venture for a great score. Here is a 
hand from which I supposed such a lead was 
surely advisable: Hearts, Q J 8; Clubs, A 
lo 9 6 3; Diamonds, Q 5 2; Spades, A 2, 
and yet, when I gave it to a short-suiter to 
play, he opened with the Ace and 2 of 
Spades, and made one more trick than it is 
possible to make by any other original lead. 
I considered the lead of 3 of Clubs probably 
the best because that suit seemed to be 
worth playing for, because there are reentry 
cards in the other plain suits, and because 
the trump strength of the hand is above 
the average. There was a fair chance, in 
my judgment, of establishing and then 
bringing in the Clubs. My friend, how- 
ever, is even a shorter-suiter than myself, 
and his judgment led him into the ''short- 
suit lane.-' 

This was the play: 



26 



HOWELL'S 





North. 


East. 


South. 


West. 


1 


A 4k 


4 ♦ 
K # 


3 # 
J ♦ 
Q # 


6 # 


8 


2 4|k 
2 

♦ 3 

^ Q 


7 4 


3 ... 


5 ♦ 
♦ 5 

^ 2 

^ 3 

^ 5 
9 # 
lO* 
3 

6 
9 
J 


8 4|k 


4 


* J 


X 4- 


5 


^ 7 
^ 9 
(^ K 


^ 4 


6 


Z> J 


9? 6 


7 


<;:? 8 

A A 


'^ lO 


8 


*Q 

X 2 

♦ 7 
lOO 
KO 

^ A 


A K 


9 


A10 


X 8 


10 


A 9 


4 


11 


X 6 


7 


12 


5 

QO 


A 
8 


13 , 









NOTES. 

(This is deal No. 8, Hamilton Trophy 
finals, 1894; 6 of Hearts turned). 

Trick I — North's play is not a "lucky 
shot," but a scientific and well-considered 
lead, made for the purpose of preserving his 
tenace strength in Clubs until a favorable 
opportunity for using it should arise. 

Trick 3 — In East's situation some players 



WHIST OPENINGS. 27 

would Open the Diamond suit, and others 
would lead the singleton Club, but his actual 
play is as good as any other. The situation 
is an excellent illustration of the dilemma in 
Vv^hich the adversary of the short-suit leader 
is commonly placed when the latter has led 
into his strongest suit. Whether to con- 
tinue his suit, or to start trumps, or to open 
another long suit, or to lead short, is the 
question that perplexes him; and his per- 
plexity is always to the advantage of the 
short-suit partners. 

Trick 4 — South leads Jack instead of 
Queen because under this system Queen in- 
dicates not more than two in suit. 

Trick 5 — The Jack of Clubs having won, 
rendering it probable that partner has the 
Ace, South starts trumps. North, by play- 
ing Queen before Jack, shows at least one 
more trump remaining, by a form of the 
"three-trump echo." The remainder of the 
hand plays itself. North and South win 
eleven tricks, whereas by the long-suit open- 
ing of the Clubs they cannot get more than 
ten, and are more likely to get only nine. 
The onlv wav to make the most out of the 



28 HOWELUS 

Clubs is to delay the development until the 
situation is clear for South to come through 
with his Queen and kill West's King. 

In order to give every player sufficient 
room to exercise his long-suit proclivities, 
if he is loth to abandon them altogether, I 
enunciate the following maxim, which, I 
think, is quite liberal: 

Play the long-suit game if you have a good 
plain suit, fair strength in trumps, and at least 
one reasonably probable card of reentry in an- 
other suit 

On SO much (or so little) I insist. An at- 
tempt to play the long-suit game with less 
strength than this is a speculation, which is 
justifiable only under rare conditions. 

Now let us see what the three elements of 
strength here mentioned are held to mean to 
the consistent short-suiter. 

First, there is the good plain suit. Under 
that head come a few — and only a very 
few — four-card combinations. The funda- 
mental condition seems to be that the suit, 
after establishment and protection, should 
be worth at least two tricks. Three four- 
card combinations satisfactorilv meet that 



WHIST OPENINGS. 29 

requirement — A K x x, K Q J x, and K O 
lo X. There are two others — A Q J x and 
Q J lo X — which appear to come up to the 
mark, but the latter is generaUy too hard to 
estabhsh, unless you have cards of reentry in 
both the other plain suits, and the other is a 
tenace combination from which the short- 
suiter hates to lead unless he is compelled to, 
or has a great game in sight. We can 
therefore lay it down as a rule that the only 
four-card suits worth opening for an at- 
tempt at the long-suit game, pure and 
simple, are A K x x, K Q J x and K Q lo x; 
but weaker suits, or suits containing ten- 
aces, may be opened under compulsion, or 
as speculative coups, or for the sake of in- 
formation, as we shall afterward see. 

The good five-card suits are those which 
contain at least two high cards (counting 
the lo as a high card), excepting, as a gen- 
eral thing, suits headed by A Q, A J or K J. 
These are the three tenaces to which I have 
referred. A O is the major tenace, K J the 
minor tenace; and A J, I shall call the vice- 
tenace (a term invented, I believe, by Fos- 
ter), because it becomes the major tenace 



30 EOWELUS 

as soon as one of the honors (K or Q) falls. 
Here, once for all, I want to say that the 
radical short-suiter avoids touching tenace 
suits in the opening, no matter how long 
they may be, unless they are backed by 
other strength of a pronounced character. 
By originally holding on to A Q J x x x x, 
for instance, and leading short, you may 
lose a trick, to be sure, but I believe that the 
chances are against it, and my faith in the 
short leads is so firm that I consider your 
prospect of gain far greater than that of 
loss. 

This is carrying the short-suit theory 
to its limit, but why be afraid? We 
have had enough of the long-suit game 
with short-suit attachments, and the short- 
suit game with long-suit frills. Between 
the two styles of play there is no happy 
medium, any more than there is be- 
tween oil and water. If I see an oppor- 
tunity, or even a plausible chance, for 
the long-suit game, I try to improve it, but if 
the short suit appears to me to be the cor- 
rect thing in a given hand I am not going to 
abandon it for the sake of getting in a single 
Ace "out of the wet." 



WHIST OPENINGS. 31 

The chance of gain by ''nursing" A Q 
and four small, if there is not a reasonable 
hope of establishing and bringing in the 
suit, is practically as good as when the 
tenace is accompanied by only one other. 
Insufficiently supported, the long tenace 
suit should be treated like a short one, be- 
cause only the top cards are Hkely to be ef- 
fective. 

When we come to suits of more than five 
cards, I am willing to call them good if they 
contain at least one high card (placing the 
lo in that category). Of course I except 
suits headed by the major, minor or vice- 
tenace, unless, with the rest of the hand, they 
afford hope of a decided gain. 

What I call the speculative coup in the 
opening is illustrated by the following ex- 
ample of long-suit play — a bold try for a big 
gain, leading low, for partner's instruction, 
from a long tenace suit, without the regula- 
tion means of reentry (deal No. 31, A. W. L. 
Trophy finals, 1895; 9 of Hearts turned): 

The leader's hand — Hearts, A 10 8 6; 
Clubs, A Q 8 763; Diamonds, Q 7; 
Spades, 6. 

The play — 



32 



HOWELUS 





NORTH. 


East. 


South. 


West. 


1 


♦ 3 
6 ♦ 

Q? A 


A 4 
8 « 

(^ 7 

^ Q 
3 
6 

8 

9 

loo 

J 
KO 
Q ♦ 
A 


*io 

A A 


104k 


% 


3 


^ 2 
^ K 


<^ 3 


4 


^ 6 
^ 8 
X Q 


^ 5 




5 


^ J 


Q? 9 


6 


* 5 

♦ 2 

2 

4 4|k 

5 4k 

<^ 4 


4k 9 


7 


4k A 


4k K 


8 


4k 8 


4 

5 


9 


4 7 


10 


A 6 


2 4k 


11 


QO 


3 4k 


13 


9 4» 

7 # 


J 4k 


13 


7 


K 4k 









NOTE. 

The original lead of a trump will not do 
so well, because, after three rounds, partner 
will be in without knowledge of your suit. 
The small card lead by this system is three 
tricks better than the usual Ace first. 



Next, let us see what we mean by fair 
trump strength. I am almost disposed to 
leave this matter, without more words, to 



WHIST OPENINGS . 33 

the player's judgment, but I submit this 
maxim — that 

You should not indicate the long-suit game by 
your original lead unless you are perfectly willing 
that partner should immediately lead trumps, from 
strong or weak ones. 

This is an immediate result of our under- 
standing of the long-suit game. If partner 
wins the first trick in your long suit, he is 
bound to play for your suit instanter, and of 
course a trump lead is generally the first 
step in that direction. My own experience 
is that the original leader should not at- 
tempt nor indicate the long-suit game unless 
he has four trumps with an honor, or two 
honors, irrespective of length. Still, I do 
not wish to lay down a hard-and-fast rule to 
that effect. The player must use his dis- 
cretion, always keeping in mind the maxim 
above enunciated. 

In this connection it is important to re- 
member that if you have two trumps origi- 
nally, it is about an even chance that partner 
has four or more. You cannot depend on 
him for good ones, but if you have the good 
ones yourself, even though they be only two 



34 



HOWELUS 



in number, you may take chances, if you 
like, on his having the length. 

Here is an example of the long-suit game, 
the original leader having two high trumps 
and depending on partner for length (deal 
No. 5, Hamilton Trophy finals, 1893; 2 of 
Hearts turned) : 

The leader's hand — Hearts, A Q; Clubs, 
K 9 6 3 2; Diamonds, 10 9 7 3; Spades, 

Kj: 

The play — 





North. 


East. 


South. 


West. 


1 


« 2 

^ A 


* 5 

^ 7 
^ 9 

*io 

4 # 
6 4k 

8 4k 
4 

9 # 
Q* 
6 
KO 
A # 


A A 


4k 4 


2 


^ 8 
^ K 


^ 2 


3 


^ Q 
* 3 
A K 


2 


4 


X J 


4k 8 


6 


« 7 
3 ♦ 
5 ♦ 

^ 3 


4k Q 


6 


* 9 


5 


7 


* 6 


8 


8 


3 
7 
9 
100 
J ♦ 
K ♦ 


J 


9 


Z> 4 


Q 


10 


^ 5 


2 4k 


11 


<^ 6 


7 4k 


12... 


^ 10 


104k 


13 


^ J 


A 









WHILST OPEXIXGS. 35 

NOTE. 

The original lead of 9 of Diamonds (sup- 
porting-card game) should effect the same 
result. 

The third essential of the long-suit hand 
is a reasonably probable card of reentry out- 
side of the best suit. An established suit, 
even with trumps out of the way, is of no 
value unless you can "get in" to make it. 
And since, very generally, you are not in the 
lead when you want to be, and cannot obtain 
the lead with a card in your established suit, 
an attempt to play the long-suit game is 
almost certainly futile unless, at the outset, 
you have sufficient means of reentry. The 
one reasonably probable card of reentry is 
what I may call the minimum limit of 
auxiliary long-suit strength. An Ace, a 
King or Queen guarded, or a fifth trump, 
may be regarded as satisfying this condi- 
tion. 

As I have already intimated, the long- 
suit form of strategy can profitably be 
adopted but seldom in the opening of a 
hand. It generally comes in later, after a 



36 HOWELUS 

trump attack or a short-suit opening, as 
opportunity arises. I fancy, indeed, that 
with the general adoption of the short-suit 
play more long suits will be brought in than 
now ever "see daylight." The most valu- 
able use of the long-suit opening is, how- 
ever, yet to be explained. In this system 
the original lead of a very small card — 2, 3, 

4 or 5 — indicates the leader's desire to play 
the long-suit game, with all therein implied. 
What it implied principally, so far as the 
leader's partner is concerned, is that, with 
any strength at all in his hand, he should 
lead trumps at the earliest opportunity. In 
other words, the original lead of a 2, 3, 4 or 

5 is an invitation to partner to lead trumps 
— a very pressing invitation, too, which 
amounts to a command when partner wins 
the first trick. It is easy enough to extend 
this idea, and lay down the general proposi- 
tion that — 

With any hand such that you desire trumps to 
be led, but do not consider it advisable to start 
them yourself, it is proper to lead originally a low 
card — 2, 3, 4 or 5 — of a plain suit. 

We have here a logical convention, which 



WHIST OPEXIXaS. 37 

may be applied with effect to several classes 
of hands. In the first place there is the 
hand containing five trumps, with a weak orN 
only moderately strong four-card suit, and/ 
little or no strength besides. From such aL 
hand the best players have always favored 
the plain-suit opening, but at the same time 
they have always felt that they ran a risk of 
disaster in delaying the trump lead. With 
our system theplain-suit opening is rendered 
quite safe, for if partner has any means of 
support in his hand — as he almost invariably 
will have — he will give you the trump as 
soon as he gets the lead. From the follow- 
ing hand, for example (deal No. 23, A. W. 
L. Trophy finals, 1895; Jack of Hearts 
turned), only the most forward trump- 
leader would gratify his inclination: Hearts, 
95432; Clubs, A 10 6 5; Diamonds, 
K 10 8; Spades, 10. By our system the 
player can open his Club suit and at the 
same time indicate his strength in trumps. 
This is how the deal was played for me by 
two short-suiters (North and South) against 
two long-suiters: 



38 



HOWELUS 





North. 


East. 


South, i West. 

1 


1 


*5 

^ 2 
^ 3 

^-4 


* K * 2 

7 ♦ A ♦ 
^7 k? A 
^lO 1^8 

3 ♦' 2 ♦ 
^ K * 3 

Q ♦ * 4 

4 6 


* 7 

4 4k 
^ 6 
^ J 

K4 


2 


3 


4 

6 


6 


^ 5 
^ 9 


^ Q 
J 4k 


7 


8 


K 


2 


9 


lOO 
8 
* 6 

*io 


7 
9 
6 4k 
8* 
9* 


J 


3 


10 


Q 


5 


11 .. 


A 
* J 

4k 8 


54k 
* 9 
*Q 


13 


13 





NOTES. 

Trick 2 — South, seeing the trumps, Clubs 
and Diamonds in his own and partners 
hands, wastes no time on the Spades, but 
jumps in at second hand and makes sure of 
two rounds of trumps at once. 

Trick 6 — North takes the chance of find- 
ing both the remaining trumps in one hand, 
but he gives partner credit for some protec- 
tion in the Spade suit. 



WHIST OPEXIXGS. 39 

Trick 8 — South having discarded two 
Clubs, North plays for the Diamonds, re- 
taining command and tenace advantage in 
Clubs. The result is complete success for 
bold play throughout, based on the valuable 
information of trump strength given by 
North's original lead. 

North and South win ten tricks; at the 
^Minneapolis Congress one North and 
South pair got six, and the other seven. 

Again, suppose that an honor is turned at 
your right, and you want trumps to come 
through it. The "modern scientific" and 
much practised device to command partner 
to lead through the honor turned is an 
irregular original opening, which in prin- 
ciple is so unreasonable — a weak lead as an 
indication of strength — that many of the 
best players have discarded the play after a 
thorough trial of its virtues. It works 
beautifully sometimes, but, like all other 
illogical and purely artificial conventions, it 
is a loser in the long run. By our system, 
however, if we want a lead through the 
honor turned, we can open a plain suit with 



40 



HOWELL'S 



a small card (2, 3, 4 or 5), thereby at once 
giving the necessary command to partner 
and treating the leaders hand according to 
its deserts. 

Take, for example, deal No. 14, Hamilton 
Trophy finals, 1893; King of Hearts turned. 
The leader's hand — Hearts, A J 8 2; 
Clubs, A O 10 7 6 2; Diamonds, J 6 5; 
Spades, none. 

The play- — 



North. 


East. 


South. 


West. 


1 


A 2 

5 
^ J 

6 
^ 2 

^ 8 


*K 


* 4 
Q ♦ 


« 5 


2 


lO* 

^ Q 


2 # 


3 


^ 9 
A 4 


9? 10 


4 


J ♦ 

^ 4- 

2 

3 
* 8 

4- 
7 
6 # 
9 4|» 


3 ♦ 


6 


Z> 7 


^ 3 


6 


^ 6 

4 4k 
« 3 

7 4k 

8 
100 
KO 
A 


^ 5 


7 


Z> A 


^ K 


8 


4k A 


♦ 9 


9 




A J 


10 


X10 


5 4k 


11 


* 7 


8 4k 


13 




9 


13 


J 


Q 









WHLST OFEXIXG.S. 41 



NOTE. 



There is a gain here, over any other 
method of play, of one trick for North and 
South. 

There is still another case, of less import- 
ance than either of the others, but of occa- 
sional occurrence, in which a small card (2, 
3, 4 or 5) can be led originally as a trump 
call. It is when you have a very long, weak 
suit, two other suits of considerable 
strength, and no trumps. With this hold- 
ing it is nearly always advantageous for you 
to have trumps led, and by our system you 
can impart your desire to partner by start- 
ing your long, weak suit. When trumps 
are led you can discard that suit if you wish, 
or, if you find that partner has support in it, 
you can discard from the other suits, keep- 
ing only the high cards for reentry. For 
example, you would lead 2 of Clubs from the 
following hand (deal No. 24, A. W. L. finals, 
1894): Hearts, none; Clubs, 986542; 
Diamonds, K O 6 3; Spades, A Q 7. 
9 of Hearts turned. 

The play — 



42 



HOWELL' H WHI^T OPEXIXiLS. 





North. 


East. 


South. 


West. 


1 


* 2 

7 4 
3 

* 4 
« 5 

6 
41 6 

* 8 

Q 


* Q 

^ 3 
9? 5 
^ lO 


* 7 
K 4k 


2 4k 


2 


3 


^ K 


^ 2 


4 


Z> A 


^ 4 


6 


^ 7 

^ 8 

* J 
4 
J 
4 ♦ 
9 4k 
8 
A 


^ 6 


6 


^ Q 


^ J 


7 


4k A 


3 4k 


8 


4k lO 


5 4k 


9 


9 
4k 3 
6 4» 
J ♦ 

5 


2 


10 


* 9 

Q 0t 


^ 9 


11 


8 4k 


12 


A # 


7 


13 


KO 


lOO 









THE SUPPORTING-CARD GAME. 

We come next to the supporting-card 
game, which under our system is in many 
respects the most important division of 
whist strategy, because it is the most gen- 
erally available and the most frequently 
adopted. It is, indeed, the essence of short- 
suit play — the theme, of which the other 
forms of strategy are but variations. It is 
a hard game to play, requiring close obser- 
vation, fine judgment, and a steady nerve. 
It is also a hard game to play against. If 
one hopes to attain success at the support- 
ing-card game, he must cultivate whist per- 
ception until he is able to see and seize 
opportunities, whenever and however pre- 
sented, with the alacrity and force of a 
fencer or a pugilist. It is a game of oppor- 
tunity. The original lead of a supporting 
card from a suit that is itself worthless, so 
far as winning tricks is concerned, is in the 
nature of a sacrifice. Such an opening at 
whist I may liken to a gambit at chess, 
where the player sacrifices a pawn at the out- 

43 



44 H0WELU8 

set, thereby freeing his game, and after- 
ward plays for position and for attack upon 
the exposed points in his adversary's Hne. 
Both the supporting-card opening at whist 
and the gambit at chess afford the greatest 
possible scope for the subsequent exercise 
of genius and skill, and lead to the most in- 
teresting developments in the progress of 
play. At this style of game "piano" hands 
— another name for excessive dullness and 
waste of time — are much less numerous 
than under the flat long-suit routine. 

The original lead at the supporting-card 
game is not a very complicated matter. If 
the hand does not contain the elements of 
strength necessary for an attempt to play 
the long-suit form of strategy, nor a plain 
suit so very strong as to justify the high- 
card opening, nor trumps sufficient to war- 
rant the trump attack, the player must resort 
to the supporting-card or the "rufhng" lead. 
Since the latter is but a modification or 
special instance of the former, I shall for the 
present confine my attention to the support- 
ing-card game. For this opening w^e re- 
serve four cards — Queen, Jack, lo and 9. 



WHIST OPEN ly as. 45 

They are generally led as the highest of 
short, weak suits. I wish to state at once, 
however, and emphatically, that while our 
Queen, Jack, lo and 9 are generally "the 
top of nothing," they by no means abso- 
lutely deny better cards in the suit opened. 
That is, we are free to use supporting cards 
as interior leads. The Queen is an excep- 
tion. Since it is unsafe to lead. a Queen 
from the head of three or more in suit, un- 
less it is accompanied by the Jack, we re- 
serve the Queen lead for not more than two 
in suit, and, of course, the higher of those 
two. From a suit of Q J x we lead J. As 
the best card Jack is led from not more than 
three in suit, but as an interior card it is led 
also from Q J and one or more others, and 
also, under compulsion, from K J 10 and A 
J 10, not more than three in suit. From A 
J 10 and one, and K J 10 and one or more 
small cards, the proper supporting-card lead 
is the 10, the principle being: 

Of two supporting cards in sequence the higher is 
led from a short, and the lower from a long, suit. 

Hence, from J 10 x lead J, but from J 10 
X x lead 10. The 10 mav also be led effect- 



46 EOWELUS 

ively from A109, K109, Q109, and under 
compulsion from other combinations, which 
I need not enumerate, but which the player 
will recognize as occasion arises. 

As the ''top of nothing'' the 10 is led from 
more than three in suit, in which respect it 
is unlike the Jack and Queen. The 9 is led 
from even more combinations than the 10. 
It is hardly a "supporting" card, but is used 
in that sense in order to give a sufficient 
latitude of choice to the original leader. As 
an interior lead the 9 is particularly service- 
able. 

The principle above enunciated relative 
to supporting cards in sequence applies to 
10 9 as well as to J 10. It appears to be 
available with reference to Q J only when 
accompanied by 10; in which case, if the 
suit is long, J is followed by Q, and, if the 
suit is short, by 10. 

At the supporting-card lead from the in- 
terior of suits many players may shake their 
heads in distrust, fancying that it renders 
too indefinite for partner the character of the 
suit originally led. If, however, they wall 
consider that this indefiniteness of meaning 



WHIST OPENINGS. 47 

is imparted also to the adversaries, their 
objection will lose a great deal of its force. 
And if, still further, they will remember that 
a common and very effectual defence to the 
ordinary, crude short-suit game is the play 
up to weakness from the left-hand adversary 
of the original leader, and that the practice 
of opening suits from the inside, as well as 
from the top, nullifies this defence, my 
doubting friends will be almost ready to 
agree with me that the interior lead, far from 
being a drawback, is a safeguard of the sup- 
porting-card game. From the hand (deal 
No. 7, Hamilton Trophy finals, 1894), 
Hearts, A 7 4; Clubs, K 10 7 6; Dia- 
monds, A 9 8; Clubs, A 3 2, the proper 
original lead is 10 of Clubs, because it at 
once conveys to partner correct informa- 
tion as to the general character of your 
hand, and is most likely to result advan- 
tageously for yourself. This deal was 
played as follows by two short-suiters. 
North and South, against two "longs," East 
and West. 

6 of Hearts turned. The play — 



48 



HOWELL'S 





North. 


East. 


South. 


West. 


1 


♦ lO 

8 

* 6 
^ 4 
<^ A 


* J 

<^ 3 


♦ A 


♦ 3 




3 


KO 
« 9 


3 




3 


* 2 
^ 5 
^ 2 

J « 


♦ 8 




4 


^Q 


<:? 6 




6 


^ 9 

7 « 

8 « 
lO* 

2 
40 
6 
J 


^ 8 




6 


^7 

2 Hk 

3 4|k 

A 
* 7 


^ K 

4 4k 

5 4k 


7 


8 


Q 4k 


9 


6 Hk 

^ J 


9 4k 
5 
K 4k 


10 


11 


♦ 4 

* 5 
*Q 


13 


A K 


7 
lOO 


13 


9 



NOTES. 

Trick 3 — As the cards lie, East's lead of 
2 of Clubs is about the worst thing he could 
do, but it also appears to be the best. He 
supposes that partner has King of Clubs, 
and plays to clear the suit. The situation is 
another forcible illustration of the dilemma 
in which the adversary of the short-suit 
leader is so apt to find himself at the second 
or third trick of a hand. 



WHIST OPEXIXGS. 49 

Trick 4 — South's trump lead is an in- 
stance of the seizure of opportunities, to 
which I have referred as a characteristic of 
the supporting-card game. 

Trick 8 — North's underplay saves a trick. 
The rest of the play is simple. North and 
South win two more tricks than they could 
by an original long-suit lead. 

I have said that we open K J lo or A J 
ID with J under compulsion, by which I 
mean that we resort to such a lead only 
when we have no short suit headed by a 
proper card (Q, J, lo or 9), because K J 10 
and A J 10 are tenace combinations, and the 
short-suiter will not ruthlessly break into a 
tenace combination. From K J x and A 
J X the Jack lead is positively disadvan- 
tageous, and rather than open one of these 
combinations, if the hand presents no other 
opportunity for a correct informatory lead 
in a plain suit, I would fall back on the re- 
source of starting trumps, either from 
strength or from weakness. Above all, the 
original leader must fight shy of deceptive 
openings. An example of the trump lead 
as a subterfuge is found in this hand (deal 



50 H0WELU8 

No. 42, Hamilton Trophy finals, 1895): 
Hearts, 872; Clubs, K Q 9 8; Dia- 
monds, Q 7 6 3; Spades, K 10, from 
which I should not hesitate to lead 8 of 
Hearts. The only other plausible opening 
is King of Clubs, but the short-suiter would 
prefer to do almost anything rather than 
start a K Q X X suit. If that is the best suit 
he has, he can hardly lose anything by re- 
fusing to open it, and may gain through the 
Ace being led by the adversary. An exam- 
ple of such a gain may be found on page 6^^. 
I append several examples of short-suit 
play with the supporting-card opening, 
which the student should carefully examine. 



Gambit opening from a hand approach- 
ing long-suit strength, but not quite good 
enough for long-suit treatment (deal No. 16, 
Hamilton Trophy finals, 1893); 8 of Hearts 
turned. The leader's hand — Hearts, K J 
5 3; Clubs, 10 9 74 2; Diamonds, A J; 
Spades, J 7. 

The play — 



WHIST OPEXIXGS. 



51 





XOKTH. 


East. 


South. 


West. 


1 


J ♦ 

^ 3 
A 


2 4k 

^ 2 

2 

3 
8 « 

^ 4 

« J 
8 
3 A 


4*1 I^ A 


2 


^lO 


^ 8 


3.: 


K 


fS A 


4 


J 


4 7 


5 


7 Hk 
^ J 


Q * 


104b 


6 


^ 6 
4k K 


^ 7 


7 


*io 

« 2 

* 4 
^ 5 

* 7 
<3? K 


A 3 


8 


Q 


loo 


9 


Q A 


^9 
^ A 
4k 6 


10 


1 
cs A X c; 


11 


4k A 


* 8 


13 


9 ♦ 
6 # 


A* 

6 


^ Q 




X 9 


±Q_ 





The short-suit play is at least one trick 
better than the long on this deal. 



Gambit opening from a hand which in 
plain suits is slightly stronger than the fore- 
going (deal Xo. 30, Hamilton Trophy finals, 
1893); 6 of Hearts turned. The leaders 
hand — Hearts, O 8 3 2; Clubs, A J 5 4; 
Diamonds, 10 6 4; Spades, J 8. 

The play — 



52 



HOWELUS 





North. 


East. 


South. 


West. 


1 


J 4k 


2 4k 
A 4k 


9 4k 
Q 4k 

2 
5 

^ 4 
7 

^ 5 

^ 9 

* 2 

4 9 


4 4k 


2 • 


8 4k 
4 
6 
^ Q 


7 4k 


3 


K 


9 


4 


QO 


3 


5 


A 


^ 6 


6 


loO 

^ 2 
^ 3 
^ 8 

* 4 

* 5 
4k J 
4k A 


J 


7 


^ 7 
3* 

5 4k 
* 7 

6 4k 
104k 
8 


^ A 


8 


9 


Z> K 


10 


* 3 


11 


4k K 


4k 6 


13 


K 4k 


4k 8 


13 


*Q 


4k lO 









Gambit opening worth two tricks more 
than long-suit. 



Supporting-card opening and ruffing- 
card return (deal No. 5, Hamilton Trophy 
finals, 1894); 9 of Hearts turned. The 
leader's hand — Hearts, 863; Clubs, A 8 
6 2; Diamonds, J 9 5; Spades, 986. 

The play — 



WHIST OPENINGS. 



53 





NORTH. 


East. 


South. 


West. 


1 


J 
6 ♦ 

8 « 

A A 


QO 
5 ♦ 
Q* 

♦ 9 

'^ lO 


A 


6 


2 


7 4k 
^ 5 


A 4k 


3 


4 


* 3 

2 

<;? 7 

4 

* 7 
A K 


X 5 


6 


9 4k 

^ 3 

^ 6 

Q? 8 

* 2 
90 
5 

41 6 

4k 8 


2 4k 


6 


^ A 


^ 9 


7 


^ J 
^ Q ■ 


(^ K 


8 


J 4k 


9 


♦ 4 
K 


AlO 


10 


7 
4k J 

8 
lOO 


3 4k 


11 


'^ 4- 


4 4k 


12 


^ 2 


io# 


13 


3 


4k Q 









Would a trump lead from West be justi- 
fiable at trick 3? If not, the gambit play is 
plus two tricks. 



Gambit opening from very weak hand 
(deal No. 18, Hamilton Trophy finals, 
1894); 9 of Hearts turned. The leader's 
hand — Hearts, 7; Clubs, K 7 6 5 3; Dia- 
monds, Q J 8 6 2; Spades, 9 7. 

The play — 



54 



HOWELU& 





NORTH. 


East. 


South. 


West. 


1 


9 ♦ 

7 « 
2 
^ 7 
6 

* 3 

* K 


2 # 
J ♦ 

^ 5 
^ 3 
*9 
*Q 

KO 
4 
Z> 2 


Q ♦ 


8 ^ 


2 


A ^|^ 


3 # 


3 


4 « 
^ 8 
A 2 

4k A 


^ J 
^A 
^ K 

4k J 


4.. 


5 

6 


^ 


4k 4 
A 


4k 8 


8 •. 


J 
Q 


5 


9 


7 
4k lO 

5 4k 

6 ♦ 
3 


9 


10.. 


* 5 

8 

* 6 

* 7 


lOO 


11.... 


K* 


Q? 4 


18 


«:? 6 


13 


^ Q 


<v? 9 




mLUmm^ 





'Top of nothing" play plus two tricks. 



Gambit opening from a hand that would 
justify the long-suit game if it were not void 
of one suit (deal No. 28, Hamilton Trophy 
finals, 1895); 4 of Hearts turned. The 
leader's hand — Hearts, A Q 3; Clubs, K J 
86543; Diamonds, A 9 8; Spades, none. 

The play — 



WHIST OPEXIXGS. 



55 





North. 


East. 


South. 


West. 


1 

2 


9 
4 K 

Q? 3 


QO 
A A 


KO 3 
* 7 X 2 


3 


2 « 

* 9 
^ 2 

*io 

6 ♦ 
*Q 


3 # 

^ 6 


K # 


4 


« 3 

^ A 
« 4 
^ Q 

♦ 5 

* 6 

A 


00 « 


5 


(J) 7 1 CO Q 


6 


^lO 


4 « 


« 


J ♦ 

7 ♦ 
9* 

4 

io# 

5 

loo 


5 4k 

6 


8 


9 


8 4» 
2 
^ J 


A* 

7 


10 


11 


♦ J 

* 8 

8 


J 


12 


^ K 


^ 4 


13 . . . .. 


^ 5 







Short-suit lead plus two tricks. 



This is distinctly not a harum-scarum sys- 
tem of whist, nor is it intended to furnish the 
guerrilla player with fireworks. It is, on 
the contrary, based on the principle of part- 
nership and correct information to partner, 
and that principle must never be violated. 

The mere lead, at the supporting-card 



56 HOWELUS 

game, is of course only a small part of this 
form of strategy. Let us suppose that an 
original supporting-card lead has been 
made, and see what then happens, or should 
happen. The first maxim is: 

Third hand, the partner of the original leader, is 
expected to finesse deeply the card led. 

This being the practice, it is necessar\ 
that second hand should, if possible, prevent 
the finesse, by covering the card led. I 
have seen many a trick lost by disregard of 
this principle. It is easy enough to formu- 
late rules for second-hand play on this basis. 
They are as follows: 

(i) 9 being led, cover with lo or J; with Q 
if you have Q x, K Q or A Q ; and with K 
if you have K x or A K. 

(2) 10 being led, cover with J; with Q if 
you have Q x, K Q or A Q ; and with K if 
you have K x or A K. 

(3) J being led, cover with Q if you have 
Q x, Q 10 X, K Q or A Q 10; with K if you 
have K X or A K; and with A if you have 
A Q X. (If you have A and small ones, 
pass the J led.) 

(4) Q being led, cover with K if you have 



WHIST OPEXIXGS. 57 

K X, K J X or A K ; and with A if you have 
A and small ones. 

There is a difference of opinion with re- 
gard to the play on lo led, with A Q x. 
Some players advise passing, that partner 
may have an opportunity to win with J, and 
others recommend the A at once. In view 
of the fact, however, that under our system 
lo is frequently led from JioxxorKio 
and others, I think the sound play is just to 
cover, with Q. 

Take third hand again. If second hand 
has not covered, third hand is to follow the 
maxim and finesse deeply. Just what he 
should do with different combinations of 
high cards may be thus pointed out in 
detail : 

(i) Whatever you have, finesse Q led. 

(2) Finesse J led, unless you have both A 
and K, without Q. 

(3) Finesse 10 led, unless you have both A 
and K, or both A and Q, or both K and Q, 
or K and one small only. 

(4) Finesse 9 led, unless you have both A 
and K, or both A and Q, or K and one small 
only. 



58 HOWELL'S 

If second hand covers, third hand should 
nearly always head the trick if he can. It is 
sometimes well to pass, as when you want 
to tempt a trump lead from the adversary, 
or to preserve a card of reentry for the long- 
suit game, but such instances, exceedingly 
rare, are of the nature of coups, which the 
fine player will perceive on occasion, but 
will not hunt for. In general, when second 
hand covers, third hand should still finesse, 
if he can. For example, if the original lead 
is a 9, and second hand puts in the lo, third 
hand, having A J and others, should play J, 
and not A. There is this difference between 
the long-suit and the short-suit openings, 
that in the former the original leader and his 
partner try to win the first trick, whereas in 
the latter they only try to make the winning 
of the trick as expensive as possible for the 
adversary. It is the gambit idea in its 
integrity. 

Next, coming to fourth hand, we have to 
consider nothing more than what he should 
do if he wins the first trick. If he is a long- 
suit player, I won't presume to advise him. 
If, on the other hand, he is simply a whist- 



WEIST OPENINGS. 59 

player, it will be sufficient for me to caution 
him against indulging in skyrockets, merely 
because the original leader opened a short 
suit. Don't lead trumps recklessly. Don't 
be too sure that you know where the 
strength lies in the suit just opened. Don't 
be afraid of starting a short suit yourself. 
Don't go behind the returns. Don't pro- 
ceed on the assumption that the supporting- 
card lead is unsound — unless you want to 
learn wisdom by pulling chestnuts out of 
the fire for Jocko. If the first trick shows 
you anything positively, act on your infor- 
mation; otherwise play your own game, 
and, if you are prudent, you will play along 
exactly the same lines as your adversaries — 
namely, the short-suit game. I am thor- 
oughly convinced that the only defence to 
the short-suit game is to play it yourself. 

Second hand, too, may win the first trick. 
To him, as well as to fourth hand, those 
"don'ts" apply. In addition, he is sub- 
jected to the temptation of returning the 
originally opened suit up to the original 
leader, on the supposition that the latter is 
weak in that suit. Don't make that mis- 



60 HOWELL'S 

take. He may have opened his very best 
suit, with an interior card, in which case he 
will be pleased to have it come back to him ; 
or he may have led a singleton, in which 
case he will get in a little trump. Better 
play your own game. 

Or, third hand may win the first trick. 
Then, if he has not strength enough to lead 
trumps, he should usually start another suit, 
short or headed by high cards, from his own 
hand. He must be cautious about return- 
ing the suit opened by partner. In fact, I 
believe there are only three situations in 
which this should be done; namely, when 
the suit happens to be third hand's best, and 
he can clear it without partner's assistance, 
or when he has only one card left in it, or 
when partner is obviously weak, and a 
change of suits is undesirable. Until 
farther developments you would better as- 
sume that partner's lead was actually from 
a weak short suit, and expect nothing from 
him in that direction. Keep your eyes 
open, however, and be ready at any moment 
to change your views and your line of play. 
Of course, if you open. a new suit, you must 



WHIST OPENINGS. 61 

do so with a correct informatory card, just 
as though it were your original lead. 

If, finally, the original leader's support- 
ing card wins the first trick, he should either 
go on with the same suit, or, if he has trump 
strength or infers a probable call from part- 
ner, should lead trumps. Don't switch to 
another plain suit, and don't start trumps 
unless you are pretty sure that you and part- 
ner have the balance of strength. If you 
have led a singleton and it has held the 
trick, then you may safely lead the lowest 
card of your longest suit, hoping that part- 
ner may win and return your original suit 
for a ruff. Partner will not misunderstand 
the play. At the same time, there is this 
objection to the original lead of a singleton 
supporting card (Q, J, lo or 9), that, if it 
wins, you can no longer give the suit to 
partner; and therefore, if you have a choice 
between a singleton "strengthener" and one 
from a suit of several cards, it is generally 
advisable to select the latter unless you are 
anxious for the ruf¥. 



THE RUFFING QAflE. 

We come next to the ruffing modification 
of the supporting-card game. For the 
original lead having in view the ruff as well 
as the pure "gambit" development, we use 
the cards not devoted to other purposes — 
namely, the 8, 7 and 6. Here it is necessary 
to inform partner absolutely that your suit 
is short. The 8, 7 and 6 are therefore never 
led as interior cards, but are always "the top 
of nothing," and nearly always from not 
more than two in suit. Occasionally you 
will be compelled to open a three-card suit 
headed by 8, 7 or 6, but you must not do so 
if you have a possible supporting-card lead. 
An 8, 7 or 6 is sometimes of considerable 
value, however, as a supporting card. I 
have already given an example of this (deal 
No. 18, Hamilton Trophy finals, 1895), and 
here is another (deal No. 14, Hamilton 
Trophy finals, 1895), in which the original 
leader plays an 8 from the top of a three- 
card suit, his hand being Hearts, Q 9 6; 



HOWELL'S WHIST OPENINGS. 



63 



Clubs, K O 8 7; Diamonds, K lo 5; Spades, 
852; Jack of Hearts turned. 
The play — 





North. 


East. 


South. 


West. 


1 


8 H^ 


Q ♦ 


74 ■'^ A 


3 


^ 2 
4 4k 
A 


^ 3 
J 4k 


^10 


3 


5 4tk 
5 

^ 6 

^ 9 

* 7 

*Q 


6 ♦ 
2 

^A 
♦ A 
A J 


4 


J 
^ 4 
^ 8 

* 2 

♦ 6 

A * 


5 


^ 5 
^ 7 
* 3 
Jk 4 

^ K 


6 


7 


8 




9 


2 « 

100 
* 8 
X K 


9 4k 


10 


7 
4 
« 9 

QO 


8 


11 


K A 


3 


13 


*io 

A 5 


6 


13 


K 


9 









NOTES. 

Trick I — It is by a process of exclusion 
that North arrives at his choice of 8 of 
Spades as the lead from this hand. He can- 
not start trumps, will not touch the Clubs 
K Q X X (the ordinary long-suit opening). 



64 HOWELUS 

and prefers not to break into the three Dia- 
monds headed by K. South refuses to win 
the trick because, if he did, he could not 
return the Spades, having the second-best 
guarded; and with a weak hand himself he 
prefers to make the adversary responsible 
for the development of the play. 

Trick 2 — The trump lead and West's 
finesse are due to East's placing Ace of 
Spades with partner, together with the long 
suiters' lack of respect for the rufBng game 
opening. The finesse, however, may be 
justifiable. 

Trick 3 — North properly persists in the 
Spade lead, rather than change to another 
suit, although the Spades appear to be all 
against him. 

Trick 7 — West marks King and Queen of 
Diamonds and Ace of Spades with the ad- 
versary, and supposes that partner must 
have strength in Clubs. The rest of the 
play is unimportant. North and South 
gain two tricks over the best long-suit 
routine, one by winning a round of trumps 
and the other by saving two Clubs instead - 
of only one, which is all they could get after 
the original lead of King of Clubs. 



WHI8T OPENINGS. 65 

With hands adapted neither to the long- 
suit nor to the high-card form of strategy, 
nor to the trump attack, you will frequently 
have the choice of a supporting-card or 
a ruffing-card lead. In such cases I would 
generally recommend the latter, but if you 
have four trumps and one fair plain suit, 
with two short suits headed respectively by 
a supporting card and a ruffing card, I 
should then prefer the former. In a word, 
you should not invite the rufif if you think 
it may injure your hand. For instance, 
from the hand (deal No. 28, Hamilton 
Trophy finals, 1893), Hearts, Q J 9 7; 
Clubs, A Q J 864; Diamonds, 10 2; 
Spades, 7, you have the choice of 10 of Dia- 
monds as an indication of the supporting- 
card game, or 7 of Spades, as a bid for the 
rufif; and 10 of Diamonds is tmquestionably 
the better card to lead. On the other hand, 
from (deal No. 2y, Hamilton Trophy finals, 
1894), Hearts, 7532; Clubs, J 10 8 3; 
Diamonds, J 6 4; Spades, 8 3, I should 
pick 8 of Spades as the proper card. 

The matter of trump strength or weak- 
ness should seldom influence your indica- 



66 HOWELUS 

tion of the ruffing game. If you confine 
your adoption of that line of play to hands 
with weak trumps, you give the adversary 
encouragement to lead trumps and defeat 
your object in the opening. If, however, 
you are wont to indulge in 8, 7 and 6-spots 
whether you have one trump or six, if you 
see nothing better or more hopeful in your 
hand, you will constantly keep the enemy 
guessing, and he will hardly ever be able to 
determine from your original lead whether 
a force or a trump lead would suit you best. 
If he leads trumps "short," in order to de- 
feat your desire to ruff, he flies in the face 
of Providence, as the score after a few 
games will show. 

Following are two examples of a not in- 
frequent phase of the ruffing game, in which 
the leader has weak trumps, but finds his 
partner strong in trumps and the suit led. 
The first is deal No. 9, Hamilton Trophy 
finals, 1893; Queen of Hearts turned. The 
leader's hand is Hearts, J 3; Clubs, K 9 8 
4 2; Diamonds, A Q 6 4; Spades, 6 2. 

The play — 



WHIST OPEXIXGS. 



67 





XORTH. 


East. 


Soi-TH. West. 


1 


6 ^ 
2 4|k 

^ 3 
^ J 


3 4k 
^ 2 
A* 

*io 

KO 
^8 
*3 

7 

8 

9 

loo 

JO 


K 4 


5 ^ 


2 


^ A 


j» 

^ K 


3 


4 


9 ♦ 
*Q 

^4 


7 « 
♦ A 

5 


5 


♦ 9 

6 
4 
*K 

AO 
OA 


6 




7 


* 6 
4 « 

<^ 6 


♦ 5 

2 

3 


8 


9 


10 


11 


* 2 

* 4 

* 8 


♦ 7 


12 .. 


^9 
^ 7 


c;? 5 
« J 


13 



NOTES. 

Trick I — Of course, if East does not 
cover, which here appears to be disadvan- 
tageous. South, with such strength in 
trumps and in the suit led, goes up with the 
K just the same. 

Trick 6 — West's lead and East's play are 
immaterial. North's reverse follow on this 
and the next trick is the plain-suit signal to 
show command of the Diamonds. 



68 



HOWELL'S 



North and South win two more tricks 
than they could by long-suit play, and the 
gain is almost assured from the moment that 
North leads his 6 of Spades. Both North 
and South pairs at the Chicago Congress 
made eight tricks on this deal. 

In deal No. 3, Hamilton Trophy finals, 
1893,6 of Hearts turned, the leader's hand is 
Hearts, J 3 2; Clubs, K 9 8 6 4 2; Dia- 
monds, A 7 3; Spades, 8. 

The play — 





NOKTH. 


East. 


South. 


West. 


1 


8 « 

3 
^ 2 


6 # 
3 4 
lO* 

4k 7 
^ K 


K * 


4 # 


2 


A 4k 


7 # 


3 


2 ♦ 

A Q 


9 # 


4 


* 2 

^ J 
A 


4k 3 


5 


5 # 

8 

*io 

100 

Q? 8 


Q ♦ 


6 


6 


J 


7 


* 4 

7 
^ 3 

* 6 
Jlk 8 

* 9 
X K 


4k 5 


8 


5 
^ 4 
^ A 


QO 


9 


10 


^ Q 

^ 9 


^ 6 


11 


Jlk A 

^ 5 
Z> 7 


2 


12 


■^^ 

^ 10 


4 


13 


J ♦ 


9 









WHIST OPENINGS. 



NOTES. 



Trick 4 — It goes almost without saying 
that North's lead of 2 of Clubs so late in 
hand is not indicative of the long-suit game, 
but is only to put partner in, if possible, for 
another round of Spades. 

The play throughout is plain and 
straightforward, and by the success of the 
ruffing game, pure and simple, gains two 
tricks for North and South over the best 
long-suit methods. 



Second hand should cover one of the 
rufhng-card leads. Through a failure to do 
so I have seen many hands slaughtered. 

Third hand, in turn, should finesse very 
deeply. If second hand covers, just top 
him; and if he does not cover, don't try to 
win unless you have considerable strength 
in the suit. If you win the trick, send the 
suit right back, unless you have the long- 
suit game in your hand, or a powerful high- 
card suit. The ruffing game per sc, apart 
from its supporting qualities, calls for quick 
action. Partner having bid for it, don't 



70 EOWELUS 

start another suit yourself until you have got 
out of the rufif all there is in it. 

Fourth hand will frequently win the first 
trick of a ruffing game lead. What he 
should then do is sometimes difficult to 
determine. I don't know of any universal 
maxim applicable to his play, but the 
"don'ts" that I gave him for use in the sup- 
porting-card game are equally good in this 
connection. 

With six or more trumps, lead a single- 
ton, if you have it, whatever its size may be. 
If it is small, and partner takes it for a 
trump call, no harm is done; and if it is a 
regular short-suit card (6 to Q), or even K 
or A, you can take care of anything the 
adversaries may afterward do. Here is a 
somewhat pretty illustration of the superior- 
ity of the short over the long lead from a 
hand containing six trumps and a weak five- 
card suit (deal No. 2, Hamilton Trophy 
finals, 1894), Ace of Hearts turned, the 
leader's hand being Hearts, J 10 7 5 4 2; 
Clubs, J 8 7 6 5; Diamonds, 8; Spades, 5. 

The play — 



WHIST OPEXINGS. 



71 





North. 


East. 


South. 


West. 


1 


8 
^ 5 


lOO 
3 

* 2 
AO 

^ 3 

3 # 

* 3 

4 4|k 

* 4 

* 9 

* Q 

9 # 


Q 


5 
J 

*io 


2 


2 
* A 


3 


* 5 
5 4k 

^ 2 

Z> 4 


4 


4 

<^ 6 

Z> 8 


^ A 
A 4|b 


5 . 




7 


« 6 

* 7 
*8 

* J 

^ 7 


4k K 


8 


K 


2 4k 


9 


9 


6 4k 


10 


7 


7 4k 


11 


6 
C9 P 


S 4k 


J2 


<:? J 


J 4k 


13 


^lO 


K A c^ K" 


Q4k 









NOTES. 

Trick 3 — It may be laid down as a general 
rule that after yon have had one ruff at this 
style of game, you should try to put your 
partner in for another force by means of 
your best suit. Hence North's play of 5 of 
Clubs, and not, as some crude short-suiters 
would select, 5 of spades. 

Trick 4 — West's play is bad. By discard- 
ing a Spade he makes sure of one more 
trick. 



72 



HOWELUS 



North and South win eleven tricks, two 
more than either North and South pair got 
at Philadelphia. With the best play on the 
East and West side the short-suit lead is 
worth one more than the long. 



Another: (Deal No. i, A. W. L. Trophy 
finals, 1894), 10 of Hearts turned, the 
leader's hand being. Hearts, K 7 5 4; Clubs, 
J 6 4 3 2; Diamonds, 743; Spades, K. 

The play — 





North. 


East. 


South. 


West. 


1 

2 


K « 

♦ 2 

3 

40 
7 
« 3 

Q? 4 


5 ♦ 
A A 


2 A 

* 8 
A 


A* 

* Q 


3 


Q 

7 « 

8 « 
2 
5 

^ Q 


J 


4 




6 4 


5 . 


J ♦ 

^ 6 


Z> A 


6 


4k K 


7 


9 
3 ♦ 

^ J 


A 5 


8 


♦ 4 

^ 5 
^ 7 


A 7 


9 


^ 9 
6 

^ 8 
100 
K 


^ 2 


IG 


8 
4 # 

9 4 

10 ♦ 


A 9 


n 


Z> K 


^ 3 


11 


* J 


♦ 10 


13 


A 6 


cr>io 







WHIST OPEXIXGS. 73 



NOTES. 



Trick I — North has not six trumps, but 
liis lead is the best from the hand. His 
long, weak Clubs, without a card of reentry, 
are worthless, and the only thing he can do 
is to try for partner's suit. 

Trick 5 — I am unable to say what West's 
best play here is, but what he does is in ac- 
cordance with the usual practice. 

Trick 6 — Here, however. West should 
certainly lead a trump, and by his failure to 
do so he loses two tricks. 

Xorth and South win eight tricks. They 
are entitled to six after the short-suit open- 
ing. At Philadelphia each North and 
South pair got three out of their hands. 



The Queen lead (from not more than two 
in suit, invariably) is not to be considered a 
bid for the ruff, but partner should never 
hesitate to force you in the suit if he sees 
nothing better to do. 

A peculiar lead, sometimes necessary in 
carrying out the short-suit idea, is that of A 



74 HOWELL^"^ WHIST OPENINGS. 

followed by a small one, which should in 
general be adopted with only just two cards 
in suit, although it may be advisable some- 
times with as many as three. (See the third 
illustrative deal given in this book — 
page 26.) 



THE HIGH=CARD GAME. 

We come now to the high-card game, of 
which httle is to be said. The only regular 
high-card openings are from A K and at 
least three small, A K Q and one or more 
small, and K Q J and one or more small. 
Only with exceptional hands is it ever neces- 
sary to make high-card leads from suits not 
so strong as these. In playing the high- 
card game straight — that is, when you don't 
expect to make anything beyond a trick or 
two in your strong suit — open the suit from 
the top, and play it downward, as an indica- 
tion to parti:r:i\ If, on the other hand, you 
have a hope of bringing your suit in, it is 
better to lead K from all three of the combi- 
nations above given. At all events don't 
use the number-showing American leads. 



75 



THE TRUMP ATTACK. 

The trump attack I believe to be justifi- 
able in three instances: First, when your 
hand is strong all around, regardless of the 
number of your trumps; secondly, when 
you have five or more trumps (or four very 
good ones) and one good plain suit; thirdly, 
perhaps, when you have just five trumps and 
no four-card suit. Upon the last-named 
condition I do not insist. By using this sys- 
tem of play we have an advantage over the 
long-suiter, in that, having five trumps, we 
can indicate trump strength without open- 
ing, them, through the lead of a small card 
from a moderately good four-card (or a 
weak five-card) suit. Of course, if the long 
plain suit is also strong, anybody will lead 
from five trumps to protect it; but if you 
have no four-card suit along with the 
trumps, you may or may not initiate the 
trump attack, according to your individual 
judgment and inclination. A safe principle 
to go by is this — that the object of the trump 
attack is to exhaust the adversaries' trumps. 



WHIST OPENINGS. 77 

SO that they may not ruff your winning 
cards; but if you have no winning cards, 
there is no use getting trumps out for what 
you may possibly find in partner's hand. 
That is a pure gamble, and trimips are too 
valuable to gamble with. Dont make an 
original lead of trumps without an object, 
and the only sound object that you can have 
is the protection of your own plain-suit 
strength. I wish to warn the player also 
against speculative trump leads, late in 
hand, at the supporting-card game. This 
style of play requires patience, and the nervy 
short-suiter will often enough enjoy injudi- 
cious trump leads from the adversary, with- 
out committing the same error himself. 

An efficacious form of the trump attack 
that does not come under any of the fore- 
going heads is the lead of a singleton small 
trump when each of the plain suits contains 
at least three cards and fair protection. In 
this case you cannot hope to win a trick by 
ruffing, and if you find partner strong you 
will be glad to see him go on and draw two 
trumps for one, a proceeding that is inevi- 
tably expensive for the adversary. 



78 HOWELUS WHILST OPENINGS. 

A very valuable rule for the trump attack, 
which, however, commonly comes into play 
after the development of the hand, is this 
maxim of Foster's: 

With an established suit (either in your own or 
in partner's hand) , four trumps, and a card of re- 
entry in another suit, lead trumps. 

In trumps use the American leads to 
show number, including the fourth-best; 
lead the fourth-best from K J lo and others, 
and lo from Q J lo and others. 



SECONDARY LEADS. 

All that I have so far said apphes specif- 
ically to cases in which the short-suiter has 
the original lead. If he and his partner are 
second and fourth hands, with long-suit ad- 
versaries, they will commonly learn from the 
first trick all they require to know about the 
subsequent conduct of the hand. They must 
freely use that powerful tactical weapon 
of leading up to the weak and through 
the strong hand. If a short-suiter wins the 
first trick at fourth-hand, and has not more 
than two remaining in the suit led, with no 
high-card combination to open, he should 
nearly always return the suit at once, 
through the original leader. In this situa- 
tion underplay freely. If, as only seldom 
happens, you cannot shape your play by the 
development of the hand previous to your 
getting in, you can go on as though it were 
your original lead. An observant partner 
can always tell whether you are playing to 
the fall of the cards or for the sake of giving 
information to him. Beyond urging the 

79 



80 HOWELU^ WEIST OPENINGS. 

player, as emphatically as I can, to lead up 
to the weak and through the strong long- 
suit hands, I cannot lay down any maxims 
for his guidance at second and fourth hands, 
except this, which is gospel for the short- 
suiter at all times and in all situations : 

Keep your nerve, and don't turn a hair even if the 
development seems to run dead against you ; stick 
to your game, and sooner or later the adversary 
will abandon his, which shall be the short-suiter's 
victory and reward. 

I have never known it to fail; the adver- 
sary of the short-suiter is insensibly led into 
an imitation of the same style of play, but he 
falls short of the mark because he has no 
system nor consistency in his aim. Out- 
landish "shots" have no place in the real 
short-suit play; they are rather character- 
istic of the w^avering long-suiter, who has 
not the courage of his convictions nor the 
faith of yours. 



SIGNALS AND DISCARDS. 

Signals and discards remain to be con- 
sidered. In a game that has so much of the 
ruffing element about it, the player should 
prepare a trump call early, if he wants to 
have trumps led by partner. Therefore we 
use the call perhaps oftener than the long 
suiters. On the adversary's lead, having 
four or more trumps, always at least pre- 
pare to call, provided you can conceal the 
call later if you wish. The four-trump 
signal (made by playing the penultimate, 
then the ante-penultimate and then the 
lowest of a suit led by the adversary) is one 
of the most valuable devices conceivable in 
connection with this system of play, and it 
should be employed whenever feasible. 

On partner's call or trump lead, or after 
he has opened the hand with a small card, 
echo with three or more trumps. There are 
several variations and refinements of the 
three-trump echo, but the most valuable in 
the main is the simple echo with three or 

81 



82 HOWELUS WHIST OPENINGS. 

more, either in the trump suit or in a plain 
suit. 

Discard always from a suit that you do 
not want led (which will generally, but not 
invariably, be your weakest suit), if you can 
do so without tmguarding an honor or 
blanking an Ace; but if you have to discard 
from a suit in which you have strength, 
make the reverse discard, or call in the suit. 
Or, if a suit is led by the adversary or by 
partner, and it is apparent that you will have 
command after two rounds, call in the suit 
whenever the signal cannot be mistaken for 
a trump call. 



LAW OF STRATEGY. 

To sum up : 

Each of the five forms of whist strategy is a plan. 
That plan which appears to be the best for his own 
hand the original leader should choose and clearly 
indicate by his original lead, and his partner should 
then cooperate in the development and execution 
of that plan, unless or until he can adopt a distinct- 
ly better or more profitable form of strategy. 

This is the grand law of whist strategy as 
the systematic short-suiter understands it. 
I hope that no long-suit critic of this system 
will call it a "mongrel" or a "guerrilla" 
game. Not that a mongrel is naturally 
worthless, nor a guerrilla habitually a 
scoundrel; but this theory is neither a 
shot in the dark nor a cross between two 
breeds. It is a tried theory, whose practical 
application, in the full light of day, has been 
uniformly successful over the long-suit 
routine ; and it is by no means a hybrid long- 
and-short afifair, because its crowning char- 
acteristic is distinctly short-suit play. 



riEANINQS OF LEADS. 

Here, in brief, are the meanings of the 
leads pecuHar to this system: 

Ace — followed by King, indicates the 
high-card game, generally five or more in 
suit, with little or no strength outside of the 
suit led; followed by small card, indicates 
the rufhng game, with probably no more in 
the suit led. 

King — followed by Ace, indicates the 
high-card game, but greater accompanying 
strength than Ace followed by King; un- 
accompanied by Ace, indicates the high- 
card game, with probably Queen and Jack 
and others of the suit remaining. 

Queen — indicates the supporting-card 
game, and not more than two in suit. 

Jack — followed by Queen, indicates the 
high-card game, the suit led being Q J lo 
and others; followed by Ace or King or a 
small card, indicates the supporting-card 
game, and generally not more than three 
in suit. 

10 or 9 — indicates the supporting-card 

84 



HOWELUS WHIST OPEXINGS. 85 

game; followed by Jack or lo, respectively, 
indicates a suit of four or more; does not 
deny higher cards in the suit. 

8, 7 or 6 — indicates the rufhng game, with 
generally not more than two in suit; gener- 
ally denies any higher card in the suit. 

5, 4, 3 or 2 — indicates the long-suit game, 
with probably a good suit, and certainly 
trump strength; commands partner, if he 
gets in early, to lead trumps. 



EXAHPLES OF LEADS. 

As examples of "the card to lead" I sub- 
mit the following hands, which were the 
leaders' in the final contests of the Ameri- 
can Whist League Congresses in 1892, 
1893, 1894 and 1895. They are published 
in the League "Proceedings" and Whist. 
The suits are transposed as in preceding 
illustrations of play. The card to lead from 
each hand is italicized. The short-suit stu- 
dent is advised to examine these tables very 
carefully. 



HAniLTON TROPHY FINALS, 1892. 






1 


2 


J8764 


K Q 5 3 2 


8163 


none 


2 


A 


none 


AQ J 852 


K J 10274 


86 


3 


7 


A K 10 


K 10 8 5 3 


Q 98 


A 6 


4 


5 


10 


Q J 10 6 4 3 2 


Q92 


Q3 8 


5 


A 


852 


J 10 9 6 5 3 


10 7 2 


10 


6 


7 


Q J10 9 


K J 10 4* 


Q73 


A 5 


7 


K 


10 9 4 


A5 K J 10 8 2 


K2 


Q J 


8 


8 


J93 


AKQ973 


10 3 


86 


9 


3 


52 


K 9 8 7 G 


A 7 32 


10 7 


10 


Q 


6 


AKQ109752 


Q5 


43 


11 


4 


A72 


K JG 8 6 3 


5 43 


42 


12 


4 


632 


A7K8 5 


Q832 


54 


13 


8 


Q5 


AQ5432 


Q82 


A8 6 


14 


9 


AKQ J9 107 6 


KJ7 


94 


6 


15 


10 


J864 


A542 


K73 


J 10 


16 


Q 


J 10 7 6 5 2 


A J 9 210 


A 


42 


17 


K 


QJ876 


A Q 10 311 


K8 


Q4 


18 


7 


A 10 6 5 2 


K J 10 8 4 


Q7 


4 


19 


A 


KJ74 


K976 


J" 3 2 


A J 


20 


K 


Q7 2 


A K J 10 8 7 


Q10 7 2 


none 


21 


8 


97 


Q963 


J7 63 


Q J8 


22 


3 


A 10 813 


AQJ7 


K84 


Q43 


23 


3 


lO'i 


A Q J 10 6 3 


K75 


K3 2 


24 


5 


K87 


A 10 9 7 5 


Q83 


A J 



(PLAY-OFF.) 



1 


7 


10 4 3 


Q 915 6 5 


KJ5 


Q62 


2 


A 


2 


AQ9642 


Q 10 9 8 


53 


3 


10 


J52 


AJ983 


10 6 2 


J6 


4 


3 


J 10 5 


AJ42 


Q 10 4 2 


32 


5 


4 


2 


KQ9542 


Q J5 


765 


6 


3 


AK5 


K9853 


AQ103 


6 


7 


3 


Q J6 


AQ98 


10 7 5 


916 8 7 


8 


9 


AK62 


AJ32 


A 10 9 


101-2 


9 


A 


Q987 


Q9732 


K2 


JI85 


10 


6 


Q10 3 


J 10 8 2 


A64 


J 10 6 


11 


9 


4 


Q J9832 


AQ109 


83 


12 


K 


A 10 7 


KQ87 


AQ106 


10 6 


13 


10 


none 


KQJ84 


Q 10 7 6 3 


Q63 


14 


9 


Q63 


AQ9862 


AJ4 


1019 


15 


5 


K4 


AKQ J 73 


KQ76 


10 


16 


2 


10 8 


Q863 


8532 


Q87 



1 Because one suit is absent. 2 xot J, because suit is long. 
3 Or, 4 J— high-card game. * Or, <^ 10. s High-card game. 
6 A difficult opening. ■ High-card game, only four in suit. 
8 Followed hy ♦ 6. & Or, 41 6. w Call through honor, n Call 
through honor. 12 x small Jf, if there were one. i3 Or, J|k J as 
a venture. " All 'round strength, is Or, Q? 10. 10 Better 
" strengthening " suit than s. i" Or, Jf, 2. 18 Or, Jf, 2. 
1'' Not quite long-suit strength. 

Note.— The card led in each suit, through the different 
deals, is printed in bold-face type. 



HAniLTON TROPHY FINALS, 1893. 



1° 


11 


^ 


« 





♦ 


1 


A 


J 10 3 


Q 6 5 4 31 


A J2 


K4 


2 


8 


K 10 7 5 4 


A8 


J2 5 4 


743 


3 


6 


J32 


K98642 


A73 


8 


4 


6 


K8 


A83 23 


K J87 


K85 


5 


2 


AQ 


K9633 


109 73 


KJ 


6 


J 


10 3 


A J 83 


10 8 4 3 2 


QJ 


7 


J 


AK 


Q753 


J9*86 


9 86 


8 


10 


963 


J632 


A 10 5 


964 


9 


Q 


J3 


K 9 8 4 2 


AQ64 


62 


10 


K 


A53 


KJ98 


J92 


952 


11 


6 


10 7 4 


10 8 7 6 4 


AK9 


95 


12 


3 


95 


QJ987654 


A4 


9 


13 


10 


AKQ2 


AQ4 


K10 9 


J 52 


14 


K 


A J82 


A Q 10 7 6 35 


J65 


none 


15 


Q 


A J975 


A83 


Q10 7 


G«'4 


16 


8 


KJ53 


10 9 7 4 2 


A J 


J7 


17 


J 


5 


Q, J 3 2 


10 6 4 3 2 


752 


18 


4 


8 


Q J752 


Q J85 


A84 


19 


8 


J52 


KJ85 


7532 


10 2 


20 


6 


754 


Q952 


A97 


986 


21 


7 


J2 


K982 


9753 


752 


22 


6 


A J 10 5 


J532 


872 


10 9 


23 


J 


none 


Q J 10 9 4 


8643 


6432 


24 


9 


AKJ7653 


109 73 


A 


107 


25 


4 


8 


KQJ74 


AKQ9 


943 


26 


2 


A 10 9 6 


AK75 


764 


86 


27 


10 


AK5 


10 98 5 2 


AJ5 


K10 5 


28 


6 


QJ97 


A Q J 8 6 4 


109 2 


7 


29 


K 


Q10 9 5 


K Q J 7 4 2 


10 6 


J 


30 


6 


Q832 


A J54 


10 6 4 


J8 


31 


J 


A874 


K J10 7 


K Q 9 310 


10 


32 


9 


Q54 


QJ1063 2 


J" 5 


83 


33 


Q 


64 


A K 10 7 6 3 


A976 


7 


34 


J 


K Q 10 6 2 


Q10 6 


942 


1012 8 


35 


A 


K963 


AKQ9 


AK2 


K4 


36 


10 


Q98 75 


A K 6 5 4 


72 


9 



1 Difficult opening ; not quite long-suit strength. 2 Or, <v? 5. 
3 All 'round strength. * Or, <|k 9. ^ Call through honor. ^ Or, 
4k 3. "> Or, ^ A. 8 Or, Jjk 2. » For a " plunge," ^ 4. i" Call 
through honor. " Or, if, J. 12 Or, ^ Q, 

Note.— The card led in each suit, through the different 
deals, is printed in bold-face type. 



HAniLTON TROPHY FINALS, 1894. 






a.'^ 










u 




^ 


A 





♦ 



1 


3 


J6 


K Q 10 9 7 5 4 


Q862 


none 


2 


A 


J 10 7 5 4 2 


J 8765 


8 


5 


3 


9 


KQ2 


Q 10 91 6 


10 9 3 


Q10 7 


4 


Q 


109 7 G 


K 8 7 5 4 22 


Q93 


none 


5 


9 


8 6 3 


A86 2 


J 9 5 


986 


6 


6 


542 


K10 8 5 


K7 2 


542 


7 


6 


A74 


K 103 7 6 


A9 8 


A3 2 


8 


6 


Q J8 


A 10 9 6 3* 


Q52 


A 2 


9 


10 


A J 6 4-^ 2 


8432 


K9 5 


4 


10 


A 


K Q J 9 7 


AQ74 


654 


K 


11 


4 


A86 


Q762 


Q94 


10 3 2 




5 


A K 10 7 4 


10«6 2 


9 73 


65 


13 




A6 


A 7 6 5 47 


AQ J 


Q76 


14 


2 


KQ754 


A8542 


A3 


J 


15 


8 


52 


K J 6 5 3 


10 6 4 


763 


16 


6 


J952 


A K8 9 5 2 


KQ109 


none 


17 


J 


A82 


AK43 


A 10 9 3 


Q4 


18 


9 


7 


QJ862 


K7653 


y7 


19 


9 


4 


K 10 6 4 2 


A Q 10 9 


A 10 4 


20 


J 


54 


KJ52 


86542 


92 


21 


Q 


KJ2 


J752 


109 5 4 2 


82 


22 


7 


52 


Q J 10 7 2 


K74 


K5 2 


23 


2 


873 


A743 


A97 


10 8 2 


24 


8 


4 


A 10 8 7 6 4 


AQ93 


10 it 


25 


8 


92 


A K 10 9 6 


AQ J74 


7 


26 


7 


962 


A K 10 7 


K852 


32 


27 


Q 


7532 


J 10 8 3 


J64 


8 3 


28 


3 


642 


A973 


J64 


10 (i 2 


29 


Q 


6 


10 8 6 4 2 


J 10 8 5 


8 7 5 


30 


J 


97 


KJ732 


7542 


7 


31 


4 


K J 7 5 3 


A J943 


10 5 


K 


32 


A 


10963 


A Kio J 5 3 


KQ8 


7 


33 


7 


AKQ64 


AK2 


K74 


62 


34 


Q 


9863 


AQ J5 


Q10 5 4 


7 


35 


K 


AJ84 


A 10 31' 


K84 


Q63 


36 


3 


AQ J4 


AQ85 


K3 


812 6 4 


37 


K 


72 


AQ872 


AQ103 


A134 


38 


9 


K 10 4 2 


J932 


Q65 


92 


39 


7 


64 


AQJ105432 


A6 


J 


40 


K 


J97652 


AQ J8 


A4 


1011 


41 


9 


10 6 


AKQJ84 


Q96 


73 


42 


8 


J632 


Q 9 7 4 315 


A7 


J4 


43 


J 


952 


AQ J53 


AI6 K 9 6 


3 


44 


A 


K2 


A J7 3 


KJ92 


A32 


45 


A 


none 


A 10 9 7 6 


AK64 


KJ b i 


46 


J 


A532 


A9 8 7 


975 


43 


47 


Q 


A876 


AQJ62 


J" 7 


3 2 


48 


10 


63 


J762 


J754 


QIO'85 



1 Or, 10. 2 Lon'i:-sait under compulsion, s Qr, 4k 6 can- 
not be injurious. * Or, (^ Q ; or, 4|l A and 2. ^ Or, * 2. ^ Or, 
^7. ^Trusang pjtrtner for trumps. 8^2, but for void 
suit. 9 Or, 4k 8. 10 Or, Z> 3. " Call through honor. 12 Or, 4k 
5. 13 Followed by 4. 1* Or, C3? 6. is Or, # J. ic Followed by 
singleton ^ . i^ Or, J|k 2 as a " plunge." is A difficult opening. 

Note.— The card led in each suit, through the different 
deals, is printed in bold-face type. 



A. W. L. TROPHY FINALS, 1894. 



^ ® 


el 


^ 


* 





♦ 


1 


10 


K7 54 


J6432 


7 43 


IT 


2 


A 


6 5 3 


J 10 7 3 


A J 7 


1018 6 


3 


8 


943 


A Q 8 3 2 


K J 9 2 


A 


4 


10 


AK72 


A 7 3 22 


K9 7 


K9 


5 


5 


9 64 


K962 


10 762 


KJ 


G 


A 


Q6 


K765 


9864 


Q10 9 


7 


5 


Q J8 


98632 


Q95 


A9 


8 


3 


94 


QJ985 


Q J 3 2 


10 9 


9 


9 


85 


10 9 8 7 6 5 


A8752 


none 


10 


A 


QJ7 


K7 43 


J 93 5 4 


10 8 


11 


9 


A Q 10 7 4 


KQ J82 


A 2 


6 


12 


2 


J9 


A Q 10 9 5 2 


A82 


92 


13 


9 


AK2 


KQ952 


KQ76 


8 


14 


Q 


J32 


K9*87 


Q85 


653 


15 


3 


J72 


KJ10876 


J8 


J5 


16 


Q 


A K J 10 9 3 2 


K6 5 35 


92 


none 


17 


5 


962 


J9652 


643 


54 


18 


10 


Q8 


Q7652 


AQIO 


K105 


19 


3 


K10 6 


J 10 863 


A432 


2 


20 


5 


none 


KQJ74 


98532 


Q J 5 


21 


9 


Q862 


■ A K« 10 9 6 


A62 


8 


22 


Q 


K985 


K J 9 6 3 


10 4 


96 


23 


7 


KJ82 


10 7 42 


K9 5 


87 


24 


9 


none 


986543 


KQ63 


AQ7 


25 


7 


Q9 


A K 8 6 3 


10 4 2 


542 


26 


3 


A^5 


A K J 6 


Q J84 


KJ2 


27 


K 


A74 


KJ86 


A 10 6 3 


73 


28 


6 


Q43 


A J 10 7 5 4 2 


10 9 


8 


29 


5 


92 


A Q 10 8 2 


K83 


982 


30 


4 


10 9 6 


K Q 10 8 4 


KQ98 


5 



1 Or, 4k 10. 20r, <:0 2. s Or, # 10. * Or, 4|k 6. s Call through 
honor, s Or, ^' 2. ^ Followed by ^ 5. 

Note.— The card led in each suit, through the different 
deals, is printed in bold-face type. 



HAMILTON TROPHY FINALS, 1895. 



m 


a 


^ 


« 





^ 


1 


10 


K 8 6 5 3 


AQ64 


A6 


3 2 


2 


Q 


K J94 


A92 


10 6 5 


875 


3 


A 


J65 


K 9 7 4 2 


J96 


A5 


4 


6 


A 84 


A Q J 9 4 3 


93 


76 


5 


Q 


10 3 


A Q 3 2 


A732 


10 7 2 


6 


8 


K4 


Q 10 6 5 3 


10 76 5 


96 


7 


J 


K 10 6 5 2 


J865 


K8 2 


3 


8 


10 


AK 


A Ki J 10 6 5 


Q 10 8 6 


3 


9 


Q 


J97 


9542 


K54 


965 


10* 


7 


A 10 8 


J953 


9642 


7 2 


11 


Q 


A K 10 7 2 


AKJ72 


AK3 


none 


12 


8 


10 9 7 


A2 K 10 9 8 4 


A32 


6 


13 


7 


4 


KJ9874 


KQ2 


103 4 2 


14 


J 


Q9 6 


KQ87 


K10 5 


852 


15 


7 


K2 


K J 10 9 8 


A J 10 


K32 


16 


K 


A 10 7 2 


KQ963 


KQ 


64 


17 


3 


4 


Q 10 7 6 5 


Q J84 


AK7 


18 


8 


A 10 9 


K 10 9 6 2 


975 


85 


19 


Q 


A K 10 9 


Q J 10 9 6 34 


65 2 


none 


20 


J 


K8 6 3 


A Q 9 6 35 


A6 


J9 


21 


J 


109 8 6 


QJ85 


Q10 4 


Q4 


22 


J 


976 


AKJ4 


J42 


8 32 


23 


4 


Q962 


8765 


Q83 


A«7 


24 


10 


Q4 


AKQ87 


9643 


7 2 


25 


4 


Q3 


AK J98 


K43 


8 72 


26 


7 


A2 


A 9 8 5 2 


KQ74 


10 4 


27 


J 


K Q 10 8 2 


Q J747 


KIO 


Q3 


28 


4 


AQ3 


KJ86543 


A 98 8 


none 


29 


10 


KJ9854 


KQ 98 


8^7 6 


none 


30 


J 


K 


QJ 10 87542 


A5 


86 


31 


A 


KJ86 


K 10 6 510 


A Q2 


J 10 


32 


Q 


985 


J 10 6 4 


J 73 


911 7 6 


33 


4 


98 


A982 


8532 


A73 


34 


4 


6 


K J876 


KJ65 


A73 


35 


2 


none 


Q J 10 9 8 5 


AQ32 


QJ4 


36 


J 


A964 


AQ53 


KQ3 


A129 


37 


4 


72 


A Q J 10 9 2 


653 


54 


38 


3 


AJ52 


Q854 


AQJ 


7133 


39 


5 


J632 


J 10 5 4 2 


10 6 


86 


40 


K 


42 


KQ762 


Q94 


962 


41 


6 


10 4 3 


K J 10" 4 


K 42 


Q93 


42 


5 


872 


KQ98 


Q763 


KIO 


43 


7 


A643 


A9854 


KJ4 2 


none 


44 


Q 


J 10 8 7 3 


AQ72 


J15 6 3 


6 


45 


7 


Q4 


Q9652 


AJ9 


10 9 3 


46 


8 


53 


K J 10 8 5 2 


742 


96 


47 


9 


K8 


KQ854 


A 10 6 4 


AI66 


48 


9 


10 7 


A 10 6 4 2 


A 10 8 2 


6 2 



1 Or, ^ A and K. 2 Followed by ♦6. » Or, (^ 4. * A 
" plunge," otherwise, A J- ° Or, 4|k J. ^ Followed by # 7. 
7 0r,<:?Q. 8 Or,* 3. ^ Or, <:? 8. 10 Or, ♦ J. iiOr,*10. 
12 Followed by 4k 9. " Or, Jf, 4. 1* Or, Z> 10. ^^ Or, A 2. le Fol- 
lowed by <|k 6. 

Note.— The card led in each suit, through the different 
deals, is printed in bold-face type. 



A. W. L. TROPHY FINALS, I895. 





a-LJ 










1^' 


P 


^ 


X 





♦ 


1 


8 


J73 


976432 


AK6 


6 


2 


3 


Q85 


Q 10 9 8 7 6 


AQ 


A8 


3 


7 


A12 


A K Q J 7 


A85 


A42 


4 


Q 


928 


K 10 8 3 


Q10 9 6 


A9G 


5 


K 


Q5 


A K J 8 5 


Q10 3 


764 


6 


J 


K10 8 7 


KJ103 


J87 


53 


7 


8 


Q94 


A J95 


A754 


54 


8 


Q 


AK54 


Q 10 33 


J74 


642 


9 


3 


94 


Q10 5 4 


9542 


K6 2 


10 


2 


73 


A J 10 3 


KQ94 


872 


11 


K 


A3 


A 10 6 5 2 


AK*72 


52 


12 


9 


5 


K8752 


10 6 42 


Q53 


13 


5 


AJ42 


K J 5 4 2 


10 8 


32 


14 


10 


A K 7 5 


K85 


953 


763 


15 


4 


JiO 


AQ73 


KJ64 


AQ 10 


IG 


10 


A2 


K 10 7 3 


9874 


A 10 8 


17 


3 


Q64 


A J73 


Q54 25 


K9 


18 


J 


98 


A653 


10 95 4 


K10 9 


19 


9 


QJ7642 


AQ4 


A 10 3 


IOC 


20 


Q 


AKJ73 


J 93 37 


Q86 


3 


21 


7 


10 6 4 


A9532 


KQ J 


A8 4 


22 


A 


Q10 7 5 


K Q 9 6 2 


A 10 5 


K 


23 


J 


9 5 4 3 2 


A 10 6 5 


K10 8 


10 


24 


K 


10 6 5 3 2 


J 953 


Q63 


80 


25 


10 


K642 


A Q 10 C 


863 


KS 


2G 


9 


AKJ4 


A J 10 6 


A Q 410 


6 


27 


2 


10 6 


Q 10 9 4 


J 1093 


Q72 


28 


5 


A96 


Q 10 4 3 2 


Q92 


Q"J 


29 


A 


J93 


AQ52 


A875 


A127 


30 


6 


K10 7 3 


K 9 8 5 4 


10 3 


93 


31 


9 


A 10 8 6 


A Q 8 7 6 313 


Q7 


6 


32 


5 


K10 3 2 


KQ5 


K65 


61*4 3 



1 Followed by ^ 2. 2 Or, 9. ^ Call through honor. * Or, 
J|k 2. 5 Or, jf, 3. (i Or, ^ 6. - Call through honor. « Followed 
by #4. 9 Or,* 3. '" Or, (3? K. "Or,* 2. 12 Followed by ♦ 
7. 13 The speculative coup ; otherwise Q. " Or, ^ 2. 

Note.— The card led in each suit, through the different 
deals, is printed in bold-face type. 



WHIST OPENINGS. 93 

We have, above, 234 hands. From 108, 
supporting cards are led; from 33, mter- 
mediate cards (or Ace followed by small) 
inviting the ruff; from 36, small cards in- 
dicative of the long-suit game; from 32, 
honors from high-card sequences; and from 
25, trumps. It will be observed, therefore, 
that the several forms of- strategy are indi- 
cated by the original leads in about this pro- 
portion: Supporting-card game, in one-half 
the whole number of cases; long-suit game, 
one-eighth; trump attack with long-suit 
game in view, one-eighth; rufhng game, 
one-eighth; high-card game, one-eighth. 
Or, roughly speaking, the supporting-card 
game occurs as frequently as all the other 
forms of strategy together, and these occur 
with about equal frequency. From these 
hands iii short suits are opened originally, 
or practically in one-half the instances. 

I have given nineteen illustrations of play 
according to the system explained in this 
book. These deals show an unmistakable 
gain of thirty-four tricks for the short-suit 
play. Among the League deals that I have 
closely examined — those for 1893, 1894 and 



94 HOWELL'S WHIST OPENINGS. 

1895 — there are many more that yield an 
advantage to the new openings. In the 
majority of them the original lead is per- 
fectly immaterial. In some cases the short- 
suit development is inferior, but to other 
investigators I leave the task of finding any 
nineteen — or any number, for that matter — 
that contain a surplus of thirty-four tricks 
for the "modern scientific" long-suit routine. 



VARIATIONS. 

I have presented the openings of the new 
system in a single definite form, but the 
reader has without doubt perceived that 
they are capable of considerable variation. 
The choice of the 2, 3, 4 and 5 for long-suit 
leads; the 6, 7 and 8 for the ruffing game; 
the 9, 10, J and O as supporting cards, and 
the K and A as high cards, is in a sense em- 
pirical, although this division appears to be 
the most natural and the best adapted to 
general use. If a pair of partners desire 
more or less of the long-suit game, or of the 
short-suit game, than I have recommended, 
there is no law of the Medes and Persians 
to prevent them from agreeing to transfer 
any of the thirteen cards from one class to 
another. Even the edict of the American 
Whist League condemning "private con- 
ventions" — which was issued at Minneapo- 
lis in 1895 on account of myself and the 
three gentlemen whose names appear on 
my dedicatory page — can scarcely be held 
to apply to the definition of openings for 
95 



96 H0WELU8 

the four forms of plain-suit strategy. 
About a dozen distinct species of trump 
signals, echoes and sub-echoes are in com- 
mon and uncommon use; discards from 
weakness, strength and anything at all, 
with the "reverse" to mean strength, weak- 
ness or nothing, accordingly, are practised 
from Woonsocket to Fergus Falls ; and the 
leads, English, American, Philadelphian 
and what not, simple or compound, are m 
the condition of Buttercup's babies. To 
this jumble of conventions — public, and 
not ''private," because they have at some 
time been published somewhere — I have 
added my fairly Hberal contribution, and 
I now propose to make matters worse by 
exploiting certain variations on the new 
openings, which variations, having been 
published, will not, I hope, come under the 
ban of ''private conventions." 

Let us begin at the bottom of the suit, and 
work upward. I have not yet met the 
short-suiter who was unwilling to give the 
long suit as many opening cards as the 2, 
3 and 4, but I do know radicals who want 
the cards all the way from the 5 to the 9 to 



WHIST OPEyn^GS. 97 

be led ultra-"short." The extreme division 
of the leads in this direction, then, would 
be: Long-suit game, 2, 3 and 4; ruffing 
game, 5, 6, 7, 8 and 9; supporting-card 
game, 10, J and Q; high-card game, K and 
A. With this classification, however, it is 
quite impossible to play the ruffing-game 
openings "straight/' That is, the 5, 6, 7, 8 
or 9 must sometimes be led from a long suit, 
top or bottom or interior. It is customary, 
therefore, to call one or more of them 
"doubtful," the subsequent fall of the cards 
determining their true character. To this 
category the 5 and the 9 may be relegated. 
Suppose you have the hand Hearts, J 10 3; 
Clubs, Q 6 5 4 3; Diamonds, A J 2; Spades, 
K 4; A of Hearts turned (deal No. i, Ham- 
ilton Trophy finals, 1893). In the table 
(page 88) I have given 3 of Clubs as the 
proper opening, with a note that the hand 
has "not quite long-suit strength." In this 
hand, the reader will notice, the strength of 
the plain suit (Clubs) is below the standard 
(see page 29), and the trumps, too, are not 
up to the mark (see page t,^) for the long- 
suit game. Now, counting the 5 as a 



98 HOWELL'S 

doubtful card, you could lead the 5 of Clubs 
here, and partner would understand, after 
you dropped the 6 or O — a higher card than 
the 5 — on the second round, that your open- 
ing was from a fair hand, but with an ele- 
ment of weakness that rendered it not quite 
good enough for the long-suit game, and 
he would govern his play accordingly. 
The same sort of 5-lead might be made 
from the hand No. 2^, page 88. An exam- 
ple of the 5-lead ''short" is found in the 
hand No. 17, page 90, — Hearts, 962; Clubs, 
J 9 6 5 2; Diamonds, 643; Spades, 5 4; 
5 of Hearts turned. From this hand you 
could lead 5 of Spades, and, dropping the 4 
— a lozver card than the 5 — on the second 
round, would tell partner that the suit was 
short, and you desired to ruff. The single- 
ton 5 of Spades might be led with good 
effect from the hand No. 30, page 90. 

The doubtful 9 is used in a similar way, 
as on the dividing line between the long- 
suit and the ruffing games. See the hand 
No. 3, page 89, — Hearts, K O 2; Clubs, 
Q 109 6; Diamonds, 109 3; Spades, Q 10 7; 
9 of Hearts turned. If you open with the 



WHISr OPENINGS. 99 

doubtful 9 of Clubs here, and afterward 
drop the lo, partner will give you credit for 
just an approximation to long-suit strength, 
as in the case of the 5-opening of the same 
character. There is this difference, how- 
ever, between the 5 and the 9, counted as 
doubtful cards, — that the 5 is more 
often led "long," and the 9 more often 
led "short." I advise the reader to run 
through all the hands on pages 87 to 92, 
and see in how many of them the doubtful 
5 and 9 would be of service. 

The 6, 7 and 8 in our variation are used 
exactly as in the regular system, but I may 
as well point out — what, for the sake of defi- 
niteness and simplicity, I have avoided in 
the foregoing pages — that the 6, 7 and 8 
may be led sometimes, under compulsion, 
from long suits, on the principle that injury 
can scarcely result from the possession of 
greater strength than you indicate. Still, 
I do not believe in the introduction of that 
uncertainty into the openings which would 
surely follow the use of the 6, 7 and 8 as 
doubtful cards ; and in all the League hands 
quoted in this book there is not one in 



100 EOWELUB 

which this use of the ruffing-game cards 
appears to be either necessary or expedient. 
I have merely hinted at such an opening 
from the hand No. 3, page 89 (which see). 

Let us consider another variation. We 
will this time reckon the 2, 3, 4 and 5 as 
long-suit openings, pure and simple, and 
make the 6 doubtful. Then the 7 and 8 
are led for the rufif, and the 9 may be made 
doubtful or not, as you please, although 
I think that in accordance with the spirit 
of the variation — which is a slight exten- 
sion of the long-suit idea, just as the first 
variation was a step in the short-suit direc- 
tion — the 9 should be left in the supporting- 
card category. This variation I would 
recommend to players whose long-suit 
bent, the effect of education and practice, is 
still too strong to be comfortably resisted. 

And if, ascending another degree in the 
scale, we call the 6, as well as the 5, 4, 3 and 
2, a long-suit card, without "doubt," then 
we can put the 7, or the 7 and 9, or even the 
7 and 8, in the "doubtfuP' class. This is 
yielding too much, in my opinion, to the 
long-suit tendency, but I give the sug- 



WHIST OPENINGS. 101 

gestion for what it is worth, and experiment 
may show it to possess some value. A few 
players could probably handle the ultra- 
"long" variation — 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6, long suit; 
7 and 8, doubtful, as on the line between the 
long-suit and the rufBng games — better 
than any of the other variations; in which 
case they should certainly adopt this varia- 
tion as the basis of their play. 

It is possible, moreover, that the wis- 
dom of adopting one variation or another 
may depend somewhat on the style of the 
adversaries' play, but my experience does 
not justify the giving of any advice on this 
point. 

Still another variation, or series of varia- 
tions, grows out of the use of the Q as a 
doubtful card, on the line between the high- 
card and the supporting-card games, in 
which case the Q is led from Q J 10 and 
others as well as from Q and one small, and 
even from Q J and one or more small. Or 
if you believe with Cavendish that the Q 
from Q and one small is "the weakening 
Queen," you may place the Q definitely in 
the high-card class. 



102 HOWELUS 

I desire earnestly to recommend the 
making of experiments with variations on 
the main system, and to suggest that the 
small doubtful cards — 5 or 6, or, perhaps, 
7 — may be of particular value. 

A few excellent players have of late tried 
the practice of playing short suits always 
from the top downward. Suppose, for 
example, that you open a suit consisting of 
9, 6 and 2. You lead the 9. Then, on the 
second round of the suit, whether you or 
anybody else lead it, you play the 6. Part- 
ner can now, barring false cards, probably 
mark the 2 alone in your hand. The plan 
is peculiarly serviceable as showing exactly 
two of a suit. Thus, if you lead the 9 from 
the 9 and 2, and drop the 2 on the second 
round, partner marks you to a certainty 
with no more. This convention of course 
renders impossible a trump call in a short 
suit that you have opened, but the advis- 
ability of a call in such a situation is hardly 
conceivable. 

The "top downward" method of playing 
short suits may be applied also to short 



WHIST OPENINGS. 103 

trump leads. If, for instance, in response 
to partner's call, you lead the ^ of trumps 
from y 6 2, you follow with the 6, no matter 
who leads the second round. This prac- 
tice is quite consistent with the three-trump 
echo, and I believe it to be a trick-winner. 



THE END. 



